Department for Business and Trade

Public Sector: Procurement

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent representations she has received on public procurement guidelines on the purchase of foreign technology from the public purse.

Nigel Huddleston: All ministerial meetings with external organisations are published in the quarterly transparency returns. Steps are being taken by the UK government to protect national security through public procurement including the creation of a permanent National Security Unit for Procurement within the Cabinet Office. As part of the Procurement Act, the Government will introduce new, mandatory debarments for specific types of contracts where the supplier poses an unacceptable risk to national security. The Cabinet Office have committed to publish guidance to assist contracting authorities in assessing national security risk and using their exclusion powers.

Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what opportunities Parliament had to shape the negotiating mandate of the UK’s proposed accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Nigel Huddleston: This Government is committed to transparency, and to ensuring that parliamentarians, UK citizens and businesses have access to the information they need on our trade negotiations. The Government undertook a public consultation and published comprehensive information at the start of talks on accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, including our strategic approach and economic scoping assessment. Throughout negotiations, Ministers and senior officials had consistent dialogue with select committees and we also published six updates in the form of written Ministerial statements to keep Parliament informed. The Government also committed to facilitate requests for a debate on negotiating objectives, subject to available Parliamentary time.

Fireworks: Regulation

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she plans to review the adequacy of fireworks legislation.

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she plans to introduce new legislation on the (a) sale and (b) use of fireworks.

Kevin Hollinrake: The majority of individuals who use fireworks do so in a responsible and safe manner and there are enforcement mechanisms in place to tackle situations when fireworks are misused. The Government has no plans to introduce new legislation on fireworks but we continue to monitor the situation and engage with stakeholders to listen to and understand their views.

Import Controls: National Security

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what powers are available to which Ministers to control imports on national security grounds; and if she will publish details of (a) when and (b) how those powers have been used in the last five years.

Nigel Huddleston: Ministers for the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) can control imports into the UK through various means, notably the Open General Import Licence. This permits the importation of all goods into the United Kingdom, subject to various exceptions which include goods such as firearms and nuclear materials. These exceptions are granted under the Import of Goods (Control) Order 1954. DBT does not have policy responsibility for all import controls — The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is responsible for Government policy on sanctions, although relevant departments work closely together on this. The UK’s import controls regime is consistent with its domestic and international obligations. Controls can be used for numerous reasons including national security.

Liquefied Natural Gas: Mozambique

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions (a) her Department and (b) UKEF have had with Total Energies on (i) lifting the force majeure and (ii) restarting work on the Mozambique LNG project.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make it her policy to undertake a (a) reassessment of and (b) civil society consultation on UKEF's support for Mozambique LNG before any work on the project restarts.

Nigel Huddleston: UK Export Finance (UKEF) is currently in talks with project sponsors and other lenders, including export credit agencies, and other stakeholders, regarding the latest status of the Mozambique LNG project. Given these discussions, I am unable to comment further for reasons of commercial sensitivity.

Hybrid Vehicles

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what proportion of cars produced in the UK were hybrid electric in (a) 2021 and (b) 2022.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: This information is not held centrally. However, figures supplied by the Society of Motor Manufacturer and Traders (SMMT) show the proportion of vehicles produced in the UK in recent years that were fully electric or hybrid electric. Year Proportion of electric or hybrid electric cars produced (%)202126%202230.2%

Fireworks: Crimes of Violence

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has taken steps with Cabinet colleagues to make an assessment of the potential impact of the public (a) sale and (b) use of fireworks on levels of assaults on (i) police officers, (ii) ambulance staff, (iii) firefighters and (iv) members of the public.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Government has not undertaken an assessment of the potential impact of the public sale and use of fireworks on levels of assaults on the emergency services or members of the public.Any assault on a member of the public using fireworks is a police matter. In addition, any attack on the emergency services – including any those involve fireworks – can be dealt with by the police using powers in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the level of humanitarian aid required in Gaza; and whether the Government plans to increase the UK's humanitarian aid contribution in response to the ongoing situation in Gaza.

David Rutley: The United Nations assesses that 2.3 million people in Gaza need access to safe drinking water and food. Current supplies are running out, one third of hospitals have been forced to shut down, and 1.5 million people are displaced. The FCDO is actively engaging with the international humanitarian system to address this current humanitarian crisis in Gaza. We continue to engage regularly and closely with Israeli counterparts to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza.The UK Government has already announced £30 million in humanitarian funding and has sent more than 51 tonnes of emergency relief for civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). This funding will support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). The UK is continuously assessing needs and advocating for access routes to be established into Gaza and supporting humanitarian pauses where they help aid to enter.

Gaza and Israel: International Law

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has commissioned (a) judicial and (b) other legal advice on the Government's position with respect to the conflict in Gaza.

David Rutley: The UK position is clear: all sides must abide by their international obligations and must respect International Humanitarian Law. The Foreign Secretary and his ministerial team receive legal advice on all matters related to foreign policy, including the conflict in Israel and Gaza. The UK Government is closely following the security situation in the Middle East and maintains a regular dialogue with international counterparts. We will continue to use all the tools of British diplomacy to sustain the prospects of peace and stability in the region.

West Bank: Health Services

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of attacks on healthcare facilities in (a) the occupied West Bank and (b) East Jerusalem since 7 October 2023.

David Rutley: The UK is aware of the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting which has documented a number of attacks against health care facilities in the West Bank since 7 October. The UK is clear that civilian infrastructure including hospitals and medical facilities, shelters and water and sanitation systems must be protected in conflict. All states, including Israel, must exercise their legitimate right to self-defence in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. We continue to engage regularly and closely with Israeli counterparts.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential human rights impact of the return of Afghan refugees from Pakistan to Afghanistan.

Leo Docherty: The UK Government continues to monitor Pakistan's deportation of undocumented migrants. Pakistan has a long history of welcoming vulnerable refugees. We urge them to respect the human rights of all Afghans in Pakistan. We are working with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to ensure Pakistan adheres to its international human rights obligations. Since September, we have committed £16 million to the International Organisation for Migration in Afghanistan to support vulnerable undocumented people returning from Pakistan and Iran.We are also committed to ensuring human rights are respected in Afghanistan. We regularly press the Taliban on human rights and work with international partners to lobby against violations and abuses.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the safety of Afghan people who have been accepted for transfer to the UK who have remained in Pakistan after 1 November 2023.

Leo Docherty: We are in close contact with the Government of Pakistan to try to ensure that Afghans eligible to resettle in the UK are not subject to deportation. The former Foreign Secretary, received assurances from Foreign Minister Jilani on 27 October that they would be safe (recorded in their exchange on X (formerly Twitter) the same day). We have provided photo ID approved by the Government of Pakistan to all eligible families to show that they are part of the UK's schemes. And we have provided guidance to those families on what to do if they are approached by the police and a telephone number to allow them to contact the British High Commission if needed.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the humanitarian impact of the decision of Pakistan to return refugees to Afghanistan.

Leo Docherty: Pakistan's Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan is having a significant humanitarian impact. The UN estimates that 260,000 Afghans have returned to Afghanistan since 15 September to avoid deportation. Many of those returning have lost their belongings and require humanitarian assistance at the border crossings. Since September, the UK has committed £16 million to the International Organisation for Migration in Afghanistan to support vulnerable undocumented returnees from Pakistan and Iran. We recognise Pakistan's sovereign right to control its borders but are calling for measures to allow Afghans to register as refugees and ensure their human rights are respected.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the options for delivering humanitarian aid into Gaza.

David Rutley: The UK continuously assesses needs as part of our humanitarian response in Gaza. There is an urgent requirement for the entry of significantly more aid. At this stage, we are focused on getting more aid through the Rafah crossing and other land routes, which is the most effective way of getting humanitarian support in at scale. We are also urging Israel to open other border crossings, such as Kerem Shalom, to enable more humanitarian aid to reach civilians in need. This is still not enough to meet the immediate needs of the population and we support humanitarian pauses where they help aid to enter. We continue urgently to explore further diplomatic options and all practical routes, working with the UN and other partners in doing so. The UK continues to stress to all parties the need to protect border crossings to support safe humanitarian access and mitigate harm to civilians.

Hamas: Hostage Taking

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what consular support his Department is providing to (a) hostages held in Gaza and (b) their families.

David Rutley: The Government's thoughts are with those families who are facing unimaginable uncertainty and fear because of these despicable attacks and kidnappings. This is a fast-moving situation and we are not commenting on individual cases. The safety of all British nationals continues to be our utmost priority and we continue to do everything we can to secure the release of hostages, including working with Israeli counterparts and international partners to ensure British nationals in Gaza can leave safely. The Prime Minister has met several families of those believed to have been taken hostage, both in Israel and in the UK, and we are assisting the families of several individuals in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the level of access to water, food and fuel for people in Gaza.

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the availability of potablewater in Gaza on the risk of fatalities.

David Rutley: The available evidence indicates that immediate action is needed to prevent death and illness from lack of sufficient safe water. According to the United Nations, 50 per cent of water infrastructure has been destroyed or heavily damaged. In response, the UK is calling for sustained, unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza so that essential aid including food, water, fuel and medical supplies can reach civilian populations. This includes calling for humanitarian pauses to ensure emergency aid can be distributed and calling for the Kerem Shalom crossing to be opened.The UK Government has also announced £30 million in humanitarian funding and has already sent more than 51 tonnes of emergency relief for civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. This funding will support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in responding to critical food, water, health, shelter and security needs in Gaza. The UK is also calling on all parties to protect border crossings to support safe humanitarian access and mitigate harm to civilians.

Hamas

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with international counterparts to help ensure that Hamas (a) does not re-group and (b) is not re-armed.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to cut off funding for Hamas.

David Rutley: The UK condemns all forms of terror, including Hamas' 7 October massacre, and we are clear that Hamas can have no future in Gaza after their appalling terrorist attacks. Hamas does not represent the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people. The entirety of Hamas has been a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK since November 2021. Proscription can support other disruptive activity including the use of immigration powers such as exclusion, prosecution for other offences and EU asset freezes. The resources of a proscribed organisation are terrorist property and are also liable to be seized. Whilst we are clear that Hamas is fully responsible for the appalling act of terror that has taken place, we are also clear that Iran poses an unacceptable threat. Hamas has been financially, politically, and militarily supported by Iran and we work closely with our partners to hold Iran to account. We currently have over 350 sanctions in place against the Iranian regime and we have deployed UK military assets to the region to carry out surveillance and act as a deterrent.

Gaza: British Nationals Abroad

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support UK nationals who have been evacuated from Gaza to Egypt since October 2023.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Egyptian counterpart on support for UK citizens evacuated from Gaza to Egypt.

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to help ensure the return to the UK of British citizens in Egypt who have been evacuated from Gaza.

David Rutley: As of 5 November, more than 150 British nationals have exited Gaza via the Rafah crossing. We anticipate more will cross in the coming days now that the border has reopened. This nevertheless continues to be a complex and challenging situation. The safety of British nationals remains our top priority. The UK has a team at the Rafah crossing to ensure we can provide the necessary medical, consular and administrative support needed. We are providing support for British nationals to get from Rafah to Cairo, where we have set up a reception centre and have arranged accommodation. Additional Consular and Border Force staff are in country to support this work, as is an FCDO Rapid Deployment Team - which arrived on 2 November - and a team of British Red Cross psychological support experts. We expect that British nationals will use commercial means to depart Egypt; where they and their dependents are unable to fund this, emergency loans are available. We are in regular dialogue with Egyptian counterparts regarding exits via the Rafah Crossing.

Israel: Gaza

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the Middle East on steps that can be taken to help end violence in Israel and Gaza.

David Rutley: Since the Hamas terrorist attacks on 7 October, the Prime Minister, former Foreign Secretary and Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon have spoken to counterparts from more than 20 countries as part of extensive diplomatic efforts to sustain the prospect of peace and stability in the Middle East. This includes the former Foreign Secretary's travel to the region in October where he met leaders in Egypt, Turkey and Qatar, and his calls last week with counterparts from Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Brazil, and Australia. To prevent further conflict and terrorism, there must be a political solution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict: a two-state solution which provides justice and security for both Israelis and Palestinians. The UK will continue to work urgently with our partners to ensure this vision finally becomes a reality.

Gaza and Israel: International Law

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart on the compliance of its instruction to residents of Gaza City to move south with the fourth Geneva Convention.

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to make an assessment of the adequacy of Israel's compliance with the Geneva convention during its operations in Gaza.

David Rutley: The UK is steadfast in its position that all states should uphold International Humanitarian Law, and we call on our friends and partners to do so. Israel has the right to defend itself proportionately, and its military operations must be conducted in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. Distinction must be made between civilians and combatants and only direct attacks against suspected combatants and other military objectives are to be made. Both the Prime Minister and the former Foreign Secretary have, in their discussions with their Israeli counterparts, emphasised the importance of taking all possible measures to protect civilians. Israeli President Isaac Herzog has stated that Israel will operate in accordance with international law.

Gaza: Health Services

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to help protect medical infrastructure in Gaza.

David Rutley: The UK is clear that civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and medical facilities, shelters and water and sanitation systems must be protected in conflict. All states, including Israel, must exercise their legitimate right to self-defence in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. We continue to engage regularly and closely with Israeli counterparts.

Hong Kong: Arrest Warrants

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether any Hong Kong national legally resident in Northern Ireland is the subject of an arrest warrant application from China.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The FCDO does not hold this information. The UK does not have an extradition treaty with China. We suspended the UK-Hong Kong extradition treaty indefinitely on 20 July 2020 following China's imposition of the National Security Law (NSL) in Hong Kong.

Turkey: British Nationals Abroad

John McNally: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 23 October 2023 to Question 200957 on Turkey: British Nationals Abroad, what points HM Ambassador raised with the Turkish Health Minister; whether his Department plans to discuss with the Turkish authorities measures to tackle the issue of of medical tourism and the need for comprehensive advice for Britons seeking such treatment in Turkey; and what issues will be discussed during the visit by the delegation from the Department for Health and Social Care.

Leo Docherty: On 4 October, HM Ambassador met with the Turkish Minister of Health and discussed the importance of mutual cooperation and clear advice to ensure the safety of increasing numbers of British Nationals seeking elective medical treatments in Turkey. HMA continues high level engagement with the Turkish Minister of Health and Minister of Culture and Tourism on the issue. On their visit, Department of Health and Social Care officials engaged with the Turkish Ministry of Health on patient safety measures for UK patients undertaking planned medical treatment in Turkey, as well as exploring the support to UK tourists to Turkey who may need emergency healthcare. Our Embassy in Ankara will continue to engage regularly with the Turkish authorities on these issues. We keep our central online guidance up to date, as well as the FCDO Travel Advice for Turkey.

Global Anti-Aggression Campaign

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he last met officials to discuss the (a) role of the Global Anti-Aggression Campaign and (b) potential wider implications of that campaign on the Government’s efforts to tackle violent extremism and terrorism.

Leo Docherty: The former Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon. James Cleverly MP, has not discussed this organisation with officials. The Government's efforts to counter terrorism are set out in the UK's Counter-Terrorism Strategy (CONTEST) 2023.

Ukraine: Corruption

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the rule of law in Ukraine and the potential impact of this on the appetite of private investors to fund any post-war reconstruction.

Leo Docherty: At the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023 in London, the UK and international partners reiterated the need for Ukraine to continue with reform, including on rule of law, to underpin recovery and reconstruction and attract private investment into Ukraine. The UK's Good Governance Fund Ukraine, a £38 million three-year technical assistance programme, has been supporting anti-corruption and judicial reforms in Ukraine, including the relaunch of the High Council of Justice and High Qualification Commission of Judges. Both these institutions are critical to a judiciary that is free from unlawful interference.

Ukraine: Casualties

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine since February 2022.

Leo Docherty: We condemn Russia's inhumane assault against Ukraine's civilian population and infrastructure. From February 2022 to 8 October 2023, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights recorded 27,768 civilian casualties in Ukraine: 9,806 killed and 17,962 injured. The actual figures are believed to be considerably higher given the challenges of receiving accurate information from locations under Russian control. The UK is committed to ensuring those responsible for atrocities in Ukraine are held accountable. We are supporting the International Criminal Court's independent investigations and Ukrainian domestic judicial processes, including through the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group, which provides practical assistance to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.

Armenia: Genocide

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with officials in his Department on the potential merits of the Government formally recognising the 1915 massacre of Armenian people by the Ottomon Empire as a genocide.

Leo Docherty: The events of 1915-1916 were a tragic episode in the history of the Armenian people and must never be forgotten. The UK Government condemned the massacres at the time and our position has not changed. Any judgement as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. We will, as ever, encourage the governments of Armenia and Turkey to look to the future and build stronger relations between their countries.

Ukraine: Rule of Law

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his Ukrainian counterpart on the principle of the rule of law in Ukraine in the context of postwar reconstruction.

Leo Docherty: The UK regularly discusses rule of law with the Government of Ukraine in the context of postwar reconstruction. Ukraine recognises that robust governance and respect for the rule of law is critical to attracting private sector investment and supporting Ukraine's postwar reconstruction. Further, the UK's Good Governance Fund Ukraine, a £38 million three-year technical assistance programme, has been supporting Ukraine's good governance, economic resilience and growth. UK-funded expertise is also helping to relaunch the High Council of Justice and High Qualification Commission of Judges to support a judiciary free from unlawful interference.

Ukraine: Politics and Government

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support the Ukrainian government on matters of (a) governance and (b) rule of law.

Leo Docherty: Rule of law and governance reform are UK priorities, alongside anti-corruption, security sector reform and economic and business environment reform. The Good Governance Fund Ukraine, a £38 million three-year technical assistance programme, is supporting Ukraine's good governance, economic resilience and growth. UK-funded expertise is helping to relaunch the High Council of Justice and High Qualification Commission of Judges, institutions critical to a judiciary free from unlawful interference. Such reforms increase private sector confidence, which will be critical to Ukraine's post-war reconstruction. The UK has driven progress on this agenda internationally, including at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023.

Nagorno Karabakh: Armed Conflict

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help promote talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Leo Docherty: The UK Government is clear that only substantive talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan can finally end the long-running conflict in the region. The former Foreign Secretary spoke with Armenian Foreign Minister Mirzoyan on 10 October and Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Bayramov on 17 October to outline our position. The UK's statement to the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) on 9 November urged both sides to make progress on a lasting settlement in the interests of the region, and to resolve remaining issues peacefully through dialogue.

Japan: War Graves

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether (a) he and (b) the Secretary of State for Defence visited the Commonwealth War Cemetery at Yokahama during their visit to Japan from 7 to 8 November 2023.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: My Rt Hon Friends the Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary did not visit the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Yokohama during their visit to Japan from 7-8 November 2023.As in previous years, British Embassy Tokyo will hold a Remembrance Day ceremony at the Cemetery on 12 November. We continue to pay our respects to all the fallen and wounded in all conflicts, including from the Commonwealth. This weekend, we will remember and honour the service and sacrifice made by our veterans and service personnel. We will never forget those who gave their lives defending our values and great nation.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Violence

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will hold discussions with Government representatives in the DRC on recent incidents in Oicha, North Kivu province where Christians were killed by Islamic State affiliates.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Recent attacks by Islamic State affiliated Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) are alarming and we are saddened by the loss of life from such attacks. The ADF is already under UK and UN sanctions. The protection of civilians, promotion of respect between different religious and non-religious groups, and human rights is a priority for the UK. We continue to work through the UN General Assembly Third Committee, UN Security Council and UN Human Rights Council to promote and protect these rights in the DRC. We regularly engage with the Government of DRC at all levels, including through Ministers in London and the British Embassy in Kinshasa. The UK is committed to supporting efforts to build stability and reduce violence in the DRC. We firmly believe the regional peace processes provide the best means by which to achieve a lasting peace and offer them our full support.

Developing Countries: Sanitation

Mick Whitley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of steps his Department is taking to help reduce global (a) spread of lethal disease and (b) infant mortality among individuals who lack access to adequate toilet facilities.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK Government is committed to improving global health and ending the preventable deaths of children, newborns and mothers. The lack of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) is still a major driver of children's illness and mortality. The Hygiene and Behaviour Change Coalition provided 14,800 health facilities with critical WASH supplies and services over the last three years. We support sanitation in schools in Mozambique and Ethiopia, and our new £18.5 million WASH Systems for Health programme will support governments to develop stronger systems critical to delivering sustainable and climate resilient WASH services - an important part of reducing the spread of disease and reducing infant mortality.

North Korea: Refugees

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of reports on the forced return of North Korean defectors from China.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: We are aware of reports that China has forcibly repatriated North Korean escapees to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The UK remains committed to raising this issue with international partners and at the UN. At the Interactive Dialogue with the UN Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights Situation in North Korea on 24 October, the UK urged the international community to ensure that the rights of North Korean escapees are protected. At the 17 August UN Security Council meeting on the human rights situation in the DPRK, the UK called on all states to abide by the principle of non-refoulement.

Nepal: Earthquakes

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the people of Nepal following the recent earthquake in that country.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK is supporting the humanitarian response through provision of prepositioned relief items, and ongoing support to the UN response. The network of UK-funded Humanitarian Staging Areas is playing a vital role in mobilising and storing relief items for the affected areas. The UK is also a major contributor to the Start Fund Nepal network which has awarded around £200,000 to Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), who are supporting over 8,000 people. We are also supporting the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) Disaster Response Emergency Fund, which is assisting 10,000 people affected by the earthquake through the Nepal Red Cross.

Department for Work and Pensions

Job Centres: Staff

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the workload of work coaches in job centres that are (a) taking part and (b) not taking part in the Additional Jobcentre Support Pilot.

Guy Opperman: The DWP as a whole, Service Leaders and local Jobcentre managers work closely with their teams to ensure that the workload is distributed appropriately, and our Work Coach caseloads continue to remain manageable. The size of a Work Coach caseload will vary as it is dependent on several factors, including the level of customer support required, the needs of the local labour market and the experience and working pattern of each Work Coach.

Motability

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will provide additional funding to the Motability Scheme over the next three years.

Tom Pursglove: The department does not provide direct funding to Motability.  DWP transfers only the mobility part of relevant benefits to Motability for eligible customers choosing to join the scheme.  Motability is an independent charitable organisation that is wholly responsible for the terms and the administration of the scheme.

Question

David Duguid: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the uptake of Pension Credit.

Guy Opperman: Our communications campaign has been running since April 2022 and Pension Credit applications were up by around 75% in the 12 months to May. We continue advertising through national TV, newspapers and broadcast radio, on social media and digital information screens in Post Offices and GP surgeries across GB.

Job Centres: Torquay

Kevin Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent progress he has made on repairing the Torquay temporary jobcentre; and what his planned timetable is for when the work will be completed.

Mims Davies: DWP announced the decommissioning of the Torquay Temporary Jobcentre on 17 May 2023. Customers and staff exited the site by June. The Department is in the process of preparing the site ready to hand back to the landlord.We sincerely apologise that this work has taken so long. Since this issue was brought to our attention, we have escalated this to ensure the contractor completes the work as a matter of urgency.The Department has provided the honourable member with a letter from DWP Estates with further information and a full explanation of the delay, which resulted from a combination of supplier failure and the transition to decommissioning this site.We can confirm that replacement glazing units have been ordered and the Department will ensure installation is completed as quickly as possible.

Suicide

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including suicides as reportable incidents under the RIDDOR process.

Mims Davies: The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) are made under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and apply to all sectors and workplaces in Great Britain. Under RIDDOR, at Regulation 6, requires the responsible person to report: Any death as a result of a work-related accident;Any death resulting from occupational exposure to a biological agent; andAny death caused by a reportable injury where death occurs within a year of the accident. A suicide would not meet the criteria for reporting under RIDDOR as it is not a death resulting from a work related accident or occupational exposure. An ‘accident’ is defined under RIDDOR as an unforeseen and unintentional incident. Suicides will be considered in an Inquest conducted by a Coroner or Procurator Fiscal (in Scotland) who will make the decision whether the death was ‘suicide’. The Coroner/Procurator Fiscal can refer cases to the HSE, or other public body, if they consider there is an ongoing risk to others.

Universal Credit: Biometric Residence Permits

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has issued guidance to Job Centre staff on the fact that a refugee does not need to have received their Biometric Residence Permit before making a claim for Universal Credit.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Answer of 23 October 2023 to Question 201819 on Refugees: Finance, whether someone with refugee status may make an application for Universal Credit before they have received their Biometric Residence Permit.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Answer of 23 October 2023 to Question 201819 on Refugees: Finance, what guidance his Department has issued to Job Centre staff on the ability of a refugee to make a claim for Universal Credit before they have received their Biometric Residence Permit.

Mims Davies: Those granted refugee status have recourse to public funds and are able to apply for Universal Credit as soon as they receive their grant of status. Individuals do not need to have received their Biometric Residence Permit before making a claim to Universal Credit. They will need to be able to verify their identity and their refugee status for their claim to be processed. Although refugees normally rely on their Biometric Residence Permit to verify their identity and their refugee status, other documents can be accepted. DWP Staff are instructed to consider all available evidence when assessing a benefit claim, including checking directly with the Home Office to confirm immigration status where they are unsure. We are currently reviewing the guidance for staff on acceptable evidence for refugees including alternative evidence for those yet to receive a Biometric Residence Permit. We are also reviewing our public guidance to make clear that those granted refugee status should make a claim to Universal Credit as soon as they receive their grant of status if they require financial support and should not wait until they receive their Biometric Residence Permit. This reflects the advice refugees are given in Home Office communications when they receive their grant of status.

Question

Rob Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help people with the cost of living.

Mims Davies: The Government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and is taking action to help. Overall, we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023- 24 to help households and individuals with the rising cost of bills. This includes up to £900 in Cost of Living Payments for households on eligible means-tested benefits. The DWP successfully delivered the second payment of £300 to over 7 million households, 99% of those claiming DWP benefits who are eligible, between 31 October and 7 November. The remaining eligible households will continue to be automatically paid between now and 19 November by DWP. HMRC started to make their payments from 10 November. This follows on from the £301 payment issued in April 2023 to 8.3 million households. A further payment of £299 will be made by spring 2024 for those entitled. Also, more than eight million pensioner households across the UK will receive an additional £300 Cost of Living Payment during winter 2023-24 paid as a top up to the winter fuel payment, and 6.4 million individuals on eligible ‘extra-costs’ disability benefits have also received a further £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment. For people who require additional support, in England, the Household Support Fund will continue until March 2024. This year long extension allows Local Authorities to continue to provide discretionary support to those most in need with the cost of essentials. Local Authorities are expected to support households in the most need, and in particular those who may not be eligible for the other support Government recently made available but are nevertheless in need. The Devolved Administrations will receive consequential funding as usual to spend at their discretion.From April, we uprated benefit rates and State Pensions by 10.1%, and in order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap levels also increased by the same amount. To support those who are in work, from 1 April, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.

Question

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposals in the Work Capability Assessment: activities and descriptors consultation on the number of disabled people living in poverty.

Tom Pursglove: The consultation closed on Monday 30 October and covered a range of options on the Work Capability Assessment. We received over 1,300 responses to the consultation and these are now being considered.The department has developed estimates of the number of claimants impacted across the range of options being considered in the Work Capability Assessment activities and descriptors consultation.Assessing poverty impacts would involve projecting forward every household’s income and individual circumstances, which is not possible to do with confidence.

Disability Living Allowance: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims for Disability Living Allowance for children were made in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London in each of the last three years for which data is available.

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims for Disability Living Allowance for children were (a) successful and (b) not successful in (i) Enfield North constituency, (ii) the London Borough of Enfield and (iii) London in each of the last three years for which data is available.

Tom Pursglove: We have grouped the response to the above two parliamentary questions. The information is not available. However, quarterly statistics for the number of children receiving Disability Living Allowance, by length of claim and by government office regions and Westminster parliamentary constituency to February 2023, are published on Stat-Xplore. Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required.

Personal Independence Payment: Hearing Impaired

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what communication channels are in place for deaf individuals to contact his department about Personal Independence Payments.

Tom Pursglove: People who are deaf or hearing impaired can use two ‘real-time’ communication channels to contact DWP to enquire about PIP. They can use Video Relay Service, a third-party text and talk solution. Alternatively, they can use Relay UK, a text relay service for people who cannot hear or speak on the phone. In line with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010, we also offer e-mail as a reasonable adjustment when providing written communication to customers who require information in an alternative format. This is available to hearing impaired and deaf customers on request and is considered on a case-by-case basis due to individual needs.

Sign Language

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects each Government Department to publish its five year plan setting out how it will meet its obligations under Section 2 of the British Sign Language Act 2022.

Tom Pursglove: In the first BSL report, published on 31 July 2023, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions committed to ask each ministerial department to produce a 5-year BSL Plan, setting out how they plan to improve the use of BSL within their departments. These will be published at the same time as the next BSL report, which will be published by 31 July 2024.

British Sign Language Advisory Board

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to communicate the work of the British Sign Language Advisory Board with the deaf community.

Tom Pursglove: Summaries of meetings of the BSL Advisory Board are available on GOV.UK. These summaries are available both in BSL and in written English.

Sign Language

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of his Department's (a) press conferences, (b) social media posts and (c) webpages have been accessible for British Sign Language users since 25 October 2022.

Tom Pursglove: The cross-government BSL Report published on 31 July 2023 provides information on the number of British Sign Language videos produced by DWP since June 2022. DWP does not hold press conferences and the information on social media posts is not collected.

Disability Living Allowance: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many unsuccessful claims for Disability Living Allowance for children were (i) appealed and (ii) successful following an appeal in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London in each of the last three years for which data is available.

Tom Pursglove: The information requested is not available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Sign Language

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has his Department made of the adequacy of changes in the level of communication (a) for deaf children in early years settings and (b) between family members who use British Sign Language as their primary language since the entry into force of the British Sign Language Act 2022.

Tom Pursglove: The British Sign Language (BSL) Act (2022) recognises BSL as a language of Great Britain, and places duties on the DWP Secretary of State:to produce a report detailing the use of BSL in the central communications of Ministerial Departments listed in the schedule to the Act; andto produce guidance on the use of BSL in the public sector. To sit alongside the BSL Act, the Government has established a non-statutory board of BSL users to advise it on matters arising from the Act and of importance to Deaf people. The BSL Advisory Board will advise the Government on the guidance detailed in the BSL Act and its implementation to best represent the Deaf community.

British Sign Language Advisory Board

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,what funding his Department provided to the British Sign Language Advisory Board in the last 12 months.

Tom Pursglove: The Cabinet Office funds interpreters, palantypists, travel and accommodation for members attending the BSL Advisory Board.

Work Capability Assessment

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential financial impact of proposed changes to the Work Capability Assessment on disabled people.

Tom Pursglove: The consultation closed on Monday 30 October. Over 1300 individuals and organisations submitted a response and 14 public consultation events were held, both face-to-face across Great Britain, and virtually. The department has developed estimates of the number of claimants impacted across the range of options that were considered in the Work Capability Assessment consultation. We will continue to refine these estimates as responses are considered following the end of the consultation period.

Ministry of Defence

Defence: Recruitment

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to encourage more women to join the defence workforce.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Armed Forces are committed to attracting, retaining and developing the best talent from the broadest diversity of skills and background, to reflect the society we serve. Women are an integral part of our Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defence is taking action to ensure the Armed Forces support women to have full and thriving military careers - including reaching the very top ranks. A Level of Ambition of 30% inflow of women by 2030 was announced in 2021, building on the content of the previously published Defence Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2018-2030. This is both "stretching and challenging" and a clear statement that Defence wants to improve, recognises the mission critical value women bring and is creating conversations and driving improvement activities. Defence has adopted almost all the recommendations from the Defence Committee’s 2021 report into Women in the Armed Forces, having tested them with the Service Women’s Networks – and in many cases taking them further. A further progress update will be provided to the Defence Committee on 14 November 2023. Notable recent progress includes: In summer and autumn 2022, new Armed Forces policies were released on sexual exploitation and abuse, a ban on relationships between instructors and trainees, a zero-tolerance approach to sexual offending, and introducing additional levers to discharge those in the Armed Forces found guilty of unacceptable sexual behaviour.Equipment and uniform improvements across the Services, including improved fit combat clothing and the provision of sports bras to all those who require breast support in initial training.A range of health information products that support Servicewomen, including menopause and breastfeeding policies, a Servicewomen’s Health Handbook and a reviewed sanitary product provision and disposal system.In terms of the civilian workforce, a range of creative materials have been developed to advertise all the opportunities within the Defence Civil Service workforce. Products include real life experiences of our employees, , who work in roles across the Defence Estate, to showcase the diversity and inclusive nature of Defence. Recently, these products have been used to advertise National Inclusion Week specially for the Engineering Profession. The majority of Civil Service roles are advertised offering flexible working opportunities, including job share. We operate an anonymous sift approach so that identifying characteristics such as gender, ethnicity and age are not available to be seen by the selection panel at the sift stage.

Defence: Training

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to promote (a) apprenticeships and (b) other training opportunities in the defence sector.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is the largest single deliverer of apprenticeships in the UK, with over 22,000 personnel engaged on a nationally recognised apprenticeship programme at any one time. This is widely publicised through the UCAS and Find and Apprentice websites, Apprenticeship in Action videos, Education and Skills Funding Agency webinars, television adverts, sponsoring National Apprenticeship Awards, and social media, particularly during National Apprenticeship Week. Over 95% of our non-commissioned military recruits are offered an apprenticeship after their trade training and 3% of our civil servants are currently enrolled onto apprenticeships. These are being added to continually with new apprenticeship offers to meet emerging skills requirements, most notably in the digital, nuclear and analytics professions. Alongside the Armed Forces apprenticeship programme, the MOD has also just been awarded Platinum membership of the 5% Club.   For both the Armed Forces and MOD Civil Service, a host of other training opportunities are also available, organised or delivered by individual business units. These vary widely depending on factors such as the skill level and existing qualifications of the post holder. All personnel are actively encouraged and supported to develop their skills and further their personal development.

Ministry of Defence: Written Questions

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Answers of 25 October 2023 to Questions 203700, 203701 and 203702 on Armed Forces: Housing, when he plans to provide detailed responses to those Questions.

Dr Andrew Murrison: I responded to the hon. Member on 13 November 2023.

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

Rachel Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) veterans and (b) family members of veterans have received the Nuclear Test Medal.

Rachel Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) veterans and (b) family members of veterans are eligible for the Nuclear Test Medal.

Dr Andrew Murrison: As at 8 November 2023, 1,684 Nuclear Test Medals had been dispatched to veterans, and 14 to next of kin. Of the cases assessed, a further 33 veterans are eligible for the Nuclear Test Medal, and 699 next of kin. There are currently 439 veteran and 648 next of kin cases still to be assessed. Initial priority was given to veterans who had applied prior to 18 September 2023, with applications from those over 90 and/or the terminally ill reviewed first.

Veterans: Identity Cards

Rachel Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans have received their Veteran ID card under the Veteran's Recognition Scheme as of 1 November 2023.

Rachel Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans have received their Veteran ID card in each local authority area under the Veterans' Recognition Scheme as of 1 November 2023.

Dr Andrew Murrison: It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the hon. Member's questions. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the Library of The House.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which Department has lead operational responsibility for the evacuation from Pakistan of Afghan people who are eligible to come to the UK.

James Heappey: The Ministry of Defence oversees relocations from Pakistan of eligible Afghans under Afghan Relocation and Resettlement Policy (ARAP) scheme, working in partnership with other Departments. For the separate Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), flights and travel assistance are arranged by the Home Office and its partners, including the International Organization for Migration.

Russia: Armed Forces

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department made an assessment of the number of personnel serving in the Russian armed forces in Ukraine who have (a) been killed in action, (b) been wounded and (c) deserted their posts since February 2022.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of mercenaries serving in Russian private military companies who have (a) been killed in action, (b) been wounded and (c) deserted their post since February 2022.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an estimate of the number of Russian (a) main battle tanks, (b) armoured fighting vehicles, (c) fixed-wing aircrafts, (d) helicopters, (e) unmanned aerial vehicles, (f) ships, (g) artillery systems, (h) multiple-launch rocket systems and (i) other capabilities destroyed in Ukraine since 24 February 2022.

James Heappey: We estimate that approximately 302,000 Russian military personnel have been killed or wounded, and tens of thousands more have already deserted since the start of the conflict. The number of personnel killed serving in Russian private military companies (PMCs) is not clear. Russia have utilised several PMCs and volunteer units in Ukraine to augment Russian military forces, but the deaths of personnel from these organisations are not reflected in Russian official military death tolls. We also estimate that over 7,117 Russian armoured vehicles, including nearly 2,475 main battle tanks, 93 fixed wing aircraft, 132 helicopters, 320 unmanned aerial vehicles, 16 naval vessels of all classes, and over 1,300 artillery systems of all types have been destroyed since the start of the conflict.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what military assets are being used to transport humanitarian aid as part of the UK's response to the Israel - Gaza war.

James Heappey: To date C17 and A400M aircraft have been used to transport UK humanitarian aid to the region.

Military Aircraft: Mediterranean Region

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many aircraft have been deployed to the eastern Mediterranean to support (a) Israel and (b) wider regional security.

James Heappey: A total of 12 aircraft have deployed to the eastern Mediterranean. These flights have provided surveillance support to Israel, including preventing the transfer of weapons to terrorist groups, and to wider regional security. They have also delivered humanitarian aid into Egypt.

Military Aircraft: Mediterranean Region

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many surveillance flights have taken place as part of the UK deployment to the eastern Mediterranean to support (a) Israel and (b) wider regional security since October 2023.

James Heappey: The UK has deployed P8 and other surveillance assets to improve our situational awareness in the region and provide assurance to our partners. For operational security reasons, I cannot comment on the specifics of this activity.

RFA Argus and RFA Lyme Bay: Mediterranean Sea

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) RFA Argus and (b) RFA Lyne Bay are deployed in the eastern Mediterranean.

James Heappey: RFA LYME BAY and RFA ARGUS deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean on 8 November, establishing a UK the presence in the region. This allows us to respond to the humanitarian crisis as needed.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many RAF flights carrying humanitarian aid destined for Gaza took off from UK bases since 7 October 2023; and how much aid in tonnes was on those flights.

James Heappey: Between 7 October and 8 November there have been three RAF flights that have carried humanitarian aid destined for Gaza, totalling 51 tonnes.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Afghan people under which schemes his Department plans to transfer from Pakistan in the next 12 weeks.

James Heappey: Many factors govern the flow of relocation, but we are grateful to the Government of Pakistan for their support on this important matter and we are endeavouring to bring as many eligible Afghans as possible to the UK, as quickly as possible.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Right to Buy Scheme

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, for what reason the rules on local authority Right to Buy receipts limit their use to re-purchase homes previously sold to their tenants.

Jacob Young: Local authorities are able to use Right to Buy receipts to buy former council homes and use them for social housing. In March, following calls from local authorities, we introduced increased flexibilities on the use of Right to Buy receipts.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Advertising

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the cost to the public purse of (a) digital and (b) print advertising in Scotland by her Department was in each month of the last eight years.

Jacob Young: I refer the Hon Member to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities transparency pages where we regularly publish any spend exceeding £250: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dluhc-departmental-spending-over-250

Economic Growth: Urban Areas

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to help support economic growth in town centres in the context of increased competition from out of town retail sites.

Jacob Young: The Government recognises the challenges our high streets and town centres are facing. We continue to support high streets and town centres with a range of powerful measures to provide the tools for local partners to transform their centres for their local communities.In Northern Ireland, we look forward to working with a restored Executive to determine the approach to supporting towns there. We recently announced a new Long Term Plans for Towns Taskforce, which will be reporting directly to the Prime Minister, and will aid in the rejuvenation of high streets and town centres across the United Kingdom.

Refugees: Gaza

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department is taking steps to help support local authorities to find accommodation for UK citizens who have fled Gaza.

Felicity Buchan: On 27 October the Government introduced emergency legislation to ensure British citizens and those eligible for support fleeing the violence in the Gaza Strip will be exempt from the Habitual Residence Test. This legislation will ensure those fleeing the conflict are eligible for benefits, social housing and homelessness assistance, where needed, without delay.

Homes for Ukraine Scheme: Homelessness

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of ending the Homes for Ukraine scheme on levels of homelessness.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of funding arrangements to support Ukrainian refugees after March 2024.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many Ukrainian refugees became homeless after their sponsorships through the Homes for Ukraine scheme ended.

Felicity Buchan: Since the start of the Homes for Ukraine scheme, we have provided over £1.1 billion in tariff funding to councils and the devolved administrations to enable them to support Ukrainian guests to settle in, integrate, and then move on from sponsorship at the right time. As we have set out previously, we always anticipated that a proportion of arrivals would end up relying on homeless prevention services and our funding was designed to address this in part. Councils in England have also received a £109 million top up to the Homelessness Prevention Grant this year to reduce the risk of homelessness amongst Ukrainians. They will be able to use this funding to support other people at risk of homelessness. We have created the £750 million Local Authority Housing Fund for councils in England to buy or create housing stock to accommodate Ukrainian and Afghan families at risk of homelessness, and to ease wider homelessness pressures, seeking to ensure that those communities which have been most generous in welcoming new arrivals are not penalised with longer social housing waiting lists.The vast majority of Ukrainians have been able to sustain housing without the need for homelessness support. The latest data indicates of those who have had a duty accepted, the majority have had their homelessness successfully prevented or relieved. Figures show only a fraction of all Ukrainian arrivals are in temporary accommodation. This demonstrates that councils have generally been very successful at preventing the need to place households in temporary accommodation.We remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine, the Ukrainians now living in the UK and the local authorities supporting them. We continue to keep the scheme under constant review and will set out any updates in the usual way.

Homelessness: Death

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what estimate he has made of the number of homeless people who have died in the last 12 months.

Felicity Buchan: The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes statistics on the number of deaths of people experiencing homelessness in England and Wales. The latest figures are for 2021 and are available here Deaths of homeless people in England and Wales - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk).

Sleeping Rough

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many rough sleepers have refused accommodation offered in each of the last five years.

Felicity Buchan: We collect and publish data on a quarterly basis on the number of people sleeping rough on a single night who have refused accommodation, as part of the quarterly publication of management information about the support for people sleeping rough. The information is available here: Homelessness statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Homelessness: Finance

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of increasing Homeless Prevention Grant funding for local authorities before 2025 on the number of homelessness individuals.

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to produce a cross-departmental strategy to reduce the number of households living in temporary accommodation.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has had discussions with (a) local communities and (b) homeless support organisations on steps to increase accommodation for people that are homeless.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the measures available to local authorities to help reduce the number of people that are street homeless.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's press release of 3 September 2022, entitled Rough sleepers helped to rebuild their lives with new strategy backed by £2bn government support, what proportion of that funding has (a) been allocated for tackling rough sleeping and homelessness and (b) not been allocated.

Felicity Buchan: At the last Spending Review, the department was allocated over £2 billion to help tackle homelessness and rough sleeping. We have allocated the vast majority of this funding across our core programmes.We are providing over £1 billion through the Homelessness Prevention Grant over three years, including a £109 million top-up this year. Temporary accommodation is an important way of ensuring no family is without a roof over their head. The Government is committed to reducing the need for temporary accommodation by preventing homelessness before it occurs in the first place.The department continues to work with local authorities and partners in the voluntary and community sector to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, including to assess the effectiveness of our interventions on homelessness and rough sleeping.

Boundary Commissions

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department submitted a draft Order in Council to a meeting of His Majesty in Council giving effect to new parliamentary boundaries within the four-month statutory period as provided for in section 4 of the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986.

Jacob Young: Following the laying before Parliament of the four reports by the Speaker of the House of Commons on 28 June, the Secretary of State submitted on 27 October a draft Order in Council, giving effect to the new parliamentary constituencies boundaries recommendations, to the Privy Council Office, so that the Order can be considered at the next Privy Council meeting thereafter.

Urban Areas: Disability

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer to Question 189778 on 20 June 2023 on Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Disability, how many projects his Department have commissioned to increase high street accessibility for disabled people through local growth funding in the last three years by location.

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of measures introduced to support outdoor dining during the covid-19 pandemic on disabled people and their access to pedestrian areas.

Jacob Young: We have engaged extensively with stakeholders including local authority officers, the LGA, charities and networks representing disabled people and sector leads to develop the pavement licensing measures. Pavement licence provisions were amended to ensure that the impacts on disabled people are fully taken into consideration by local authorities when making decisions.The needs of disabled persons must be taken into account by the authority when determining whether furniture put on the highway would be an unacceptable obstruction. In doing so, authorities are required to have regard to the needs of disabled people and the recommended distances required for access by disabled people, as set out in guidance issued by the Secretary of State.The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities does not centrally collect data on the number of projects delivered by local authorities which seek to increase high street accessibility.

Local Government: Audit

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to reduce backlogs of audit opinions for local government bodies.

Lee Rowley: The Government is continuing to engage across the local audit sector, including local authorities on the proposals set out in the system wide statement published in July. Further details will be issued in due course.

Elections: North Yorkshire

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent steps he has taken to establish (a) devolution and (b) an elected mayor in North Yorkshire.

Jacob Young: The York and North Yorkshire devolution deal was agreed on 1 August 2022; details of the deal can be found at the following link. The draft York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority Order 2023 was laid in Parliament on 7 November; this, together with the Explanatory Memorandum, can be found at the following link.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Incentives

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the value was of non-cash vouchers awarded to staff working for his core Department as performance-related bonuses in 2022-23.

Jacob Young: Information for the year 2021-22 is available here, and data for 2022-23 will be published in due course.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to respond to the letter of 14 August 2023 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich, case reference 30420793.

Lee Rowley: I apologise to the Hon Member for the delay in responding to his correspondence. A response issued on 13 November 2023.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 16 August 2023 from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich on Union Park, Greenwich SE10.

Lee Rowley: I apologise to the Hon Member for the delay in responding to his correspondence. A response issued on 13 November 2023.

Department of Health and Social Care

Hearing Impairment and Visual Impairment: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of access to (a) adult hearing loss services and (b) sight loss services in (i) Enfield North constituency, (ii) the London Borough of Enfield and (iii) London.

Maria Caulfield: We have no plans to make such an assessment. Commissioning of hearing and sight loss services takes place at a local level based on the needs of the local population, and we expect commissioners to follow relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. Regarding sight loss services, the development of integrated care systems and the National Ophthalmic Eye Care Recovery and Transformation Programme represent an opportunity to join up social and clinical care and ensure that there is an integrated approach covering all aspects of eye care including access to sight loss services.For hearing loss, the Action Plan on Hearing Loss (2015) sets out key objectives on hearing loss including, prevention, early diagnosis, maximising independence, and enabling people to take part in every-day activities.‘Commissioning Services for People with Hearing Loss: A Framework for Clinical Commissioning Groups’ was published in July 2016. This framework supports the newly established integrated care boards in England to make informed decisions on maximising value for local populations and provide consistent, high quality, integrated care. It also addresses inequalities in access and outcomes between hearing services.Where sight or hearing loss leads to a social care need, local authorities are responsible for assessing individual’s eligibility for care and support.

Mental Health Services: Young People

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to improve access to mental health services for people aged between 18 and 25 years old in Hornsey and Wood Green constituency.

Maria Caulfield: The NHS Long Term Plan commits to investing £2.3 billion extra funding a year in expanding and transforming mental health services by March 2024, enabling an extra two million people, including people aged between 18 and 25 years old in Hornsey and Wood Green constituency, to be treated by mental health services within the National Health Service.Integrated care boards (ICBs) and local authorities work with local partners to understand local needs for mental health services. We expect all ICBs to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard, increasing investment in mental health services in line with their overall increase in allocation for the year.

Bipolar Disorder: Suicide

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that implementation of the suicide prevention strategy will take into account the needs of people with bipolar.

Maria Caulfield: The new suicide prevention strategy for England is a five-year strategy which sets out the Government’s ambition for suicide prevention. It is a multi-sector and cross-government suicide strategy, with actions from a wide range of organisations that will be delivered over the next few years. The Department has established a £10 million Suicide Prevention Grant Fund to run from 2023 to March 2025 to support voluntary, community or social enterprise organisations, including those who support people with bipolar, to deliver suicide prevention activity.The Department, alongside NHS England, intends to explore opportunities to improve the quality of care for patients with mental health diagnoses and ensure compliance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. This includes patients diagnosed with affective disorders, including depression and bipolar, who accounted for 42% of all patient suicides in England between 2010 and 2020.

Mental Health Services

Jonathan Gullis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people received NHS talking therapies in each integrated care system area in the most recent period for which data is available; and how many and what proportion of those therapies were conducted (a) online, (b) face-to-face and (c) by phone.

Maria Caulfield: The information requested is shown in the attached table.Table for PQ560. (xlsx, 51.9KB)

Mental Health Services

Jonathan Gullis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people accessed talking therapies each year from 2010 and 2022.

Maria Caulfield: The following table shows the number of patient referrals who accessed talking therapies each year in England from 2012/13 to 2012/22:YearAccessed Services2012/13434,2472013/14709,1172014/15815,6652015/16953,5222016/17965,3792017/181,009,0352018/191,092,2962019/201,165,6532020/211,024,0142021/221,244,386 Source: IAPT dataset, NHS EnglandNotes:Data is not available prior to 2012/13.NHS Talking Therapies data are given as a count of patient referrals not patients, as a patient may have more than one referral in a year.A referral has accessed services when the patient has had their first attended, treatment appointment or an Internet Enabled Therapy log has been recorded for them.

Mental Health Services: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of mental health specialists in (i) Enfield North constituency, (ii) the London Borough of Enfield and (iii) London.

Maria Caulfield: The National Health Service has published a Long Term Workforce Plan which outlines the steps the Government is taking to support the recruitment and retention of mental health specialists, including in Enfield North constituency, the London Borough of Enfield and London. More information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/nhs-long-term-workforce-plan-v1.1.pdf

Mental Health Services

Jonathan Gullis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the cost to the public purse was for Improving Access to Psychological Therapies in each financial year from 2010 to 2022.

Maria Caulfield: The following table shows the total amount spent by integrated care boards and NHS England on delivery of Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT), now known as NHS Talking Therapies, for each financial year from 2016/17 to 2021/22:Financial yearTotal cost of delivering IAPT services (£’000)2016/17419,4302017/18441,3422018/19518,5902019/20593,1482020/21691,2642021/22776,159Source: NHS EnglandNote: Data prior to 2016/17 is not available.

Coronavirus: Screening

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many pharmacies have bought coded stamped lateral flow tests for collection by immunocompromised patients from 17 November.

Maria Caulfield: The NHS Lateral Flow Device (LFD) tests supply service for patients potentially eligible for COVID-19 treatments was launched on 6 November 2023. Information about how many pharmacies have supplied LFD tests will not be available until pharmacies have claimed for the delivery of the service.

Air Pollution

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of setting the air quality target for PM2.5 at 10 micrograms per cubic meter by 2030 on (a) public health and (b) mortality rates.

Maria Caulfield: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) does not currently intend to undertake any assessments of the impact of air quality targets for PM2.5 on public health or mortality rates.In 2023, UKHSA estimated the impact of current emission policies on future mortality and hospital admissions in the United Kingdom. This found a greater than 30% reduction in attributable mortality beyond 2030 for current policies compared with 2018.In 2018, the former Public Health England estimated that a one µg/m3 reduction in fine particulate air pollution in England could prevent around 50,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 15,000 strokes, 9,000 cases of asthma and 4,000 lung cancers between 2017 and 2025.

Shingles: Vaccination

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether people aged between 66 and 69 on 1 September 2023 are eligible for the shingles vaccine.

Maria Caulfield: People aged 66 to 69 years old on 1 September 2023 who do not have a severely weakened immune system will become eligible for shingles vaccination when they turn 70 years old as they would have done prior to 1 September 2023. Those with a severely weakened immune system are eligible for Shingrix from 50 years of age, due to their increased risk.Since 1 September 2023, the shingles immunisation programme has offered vaccination with Shingrix. As part of the progressive roll out, current eligibility includes those turning 65 years old and 70 years old from 1 September 2023. This will continue yearly until all those aged 65 to 70 years old have been offered vaccination. In 2028, the vaccine offer will be changed to offer vaccination to those turning 60 and 65 years old.

Prescription Drugs

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure adequate levels of supply of medication prescribed for (a) epilepsy, (b) hormone replacement therapy and (c) ADHD.

Will Quince: The Department has well-established procedures to deal with medicine shortages and works closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England and others operating in the supply chain to help prevent shortages and to ensure that the risks to patients are minimised when shortages do arise.We are aware of a current supply issue with generic lamotrigine 5mg dispersible tablets for epilepsy. We have issued comprehensive management guidance to the National Health Service highlighting the availability of alternative products.There have been issues with the supply of a limited number of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products, primarily due to very sharp increases in demand, but the supply position for many of those products has improved considerably over the last year. Only one of the 23 Serious Shortage Protocols issued since April 2022 remains in place. We continue to engage with suppliers individually to address these issues and improve resilience in the short, medium and long term. We are also holding quarterly roundtables with manufacturers, wholesalers and community pharmacists to monitor progress and agree what more needs to be done to ensure supply is sufficient to meet demand. The eighth HRT supply roundtable is expected to be held in January 2024.We are aware of disruptions to the global supply of medicines used for the management of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Some issues are now resolving. However, we know that there are currently disruptions to the supply of some other medicines, primarily driven by issues which have resulted in capacity constraints at key manufacturing sites. We are working intensively with the respective manufacturers to resolve the issues as soon as possible and to ensure patients have continuous access to ADHD medicines in the United Kingdom, in the short and long term.

Cystic Fibrosis: Medical Treatments

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure the continued NHS funding of modulator therapies that are used to treat (a) children, (b) new patients and (c) other patients with cystic fibrosis.

Will Quince: Orkambi, Symkevi and Kaftrio are currently available as treatment options for eligible National Health Service patients with cystic fibrosis, under the terms of a commercial agreement reached between NHS England and the manufacturer. This agreement has enabled the collection of data to inform a full appraisal of these medicines by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which is currently underway.NICE published draft guidance on 3 November 2023 which does not recommend Orkambi, Symkevi and Kaftrio for the treatment of cystic fibrosis. The draft guidance is now subject to a public consultation and NICE’s committee will carefully consider all evidence as well as comments received during the consultation in developing its final guidance, which is expected to be published on 20 March 2024. Patients already receiving these treatments will have continued access following the publication of NICE’s final guidance, regardless of the outcome.

Accident and Emergency Departments: Sotrovimab

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of hospitals with accident and emergency units have supplies of Sotrovimab.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the supply of anti-viral drug Sotrovimab for immunocompromised patients.

Will Quince: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends sotrovimab as an option for the treatment of patients with COVID-19 meeting specified clinical criteria and subject to a commercial arrangement agreed with the company. The National Health Service in England is legally required to make funding available for sotrovimab in line with NICE’s recommendations.The Government secured stocks of sotrovimab on behalf of all nations in the United Kingdom. At current levels of use, driven by the existing access policies, there is sufficient stock held to last until the latter half of 2024. Discussions are ongoing with the manufacturer to ensure that stock is available through normal commercial channels when this Government-owned stock is consumed.Information on the proportion of hospitals with accident and emergency units that have supplies of Sotrovimab is not held.

IVF: Older People

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's policy is on remedies for women who (a) cannot receive and (b) have difficulty receiving NHS IVF treatment because they have reached the age threshold for such treatment during the time taken to get a referral to a fertility (i) specialist and (ii) clinic from their GP.

Maria Caulfield: Funding decisions for health services in England, including in vitro fertilisation (IVF), are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population.We recognise that the impact of COVID-19 and industrial action has caused delays for some patients in receiving fertility treatment and we would expect ICBs to take this into account in assessing age-related entitlement to treatment.

IVF: Eligibility

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 26 October 2023 to Question 203979 on IVF: Finance, if he will publish a timetable for the implementation of the commitment to end the exclusion of couples from National Health Service-funded IVF where one partner has a child.

Maria Caulfield: This commitment is a year two priority for the Women’s Health Strategy, so we expect guidance for integrated care boards (ICBs) to be completed and disseminated to the National Health Service before July 2024. It will be for ICBs to implement.

Huntington's Disease: Mental Health Services

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to ensure patients with Huntington’s Disease have access to community mental health services when psychiatric symptoms are present.

Maria Caulfield: We have been made aware of instances of people with Huntington’s disease experiencing difficulty in accessing mental health services. NHS England has circulated a statement to integrated care services (ICSs) to say that mental health services should be offered based on clinical need and people should not be excluded due to coexisting conditions where the service is clinically appropriate.We are also investing at least £2.3 billion of additional funding a year by March 2024, compared to 2018/19, to expand and transform mental health services in England so that two million more people including those with Huntington’s disease can get the mental health support that they need.

IVF: Older People

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to help women over 40 access IVF treatment.

Maria Caulfield: Funding decisions for health services in England, including in vitro fertilisation (IVF), are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population.The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines for fertility provide the best practice for treatment for National Health Service patients and ICBs should have regard for their recommendations. The guidelines include a recommendation to offer one cycle of IVF for women between the ages of 40 and 42.

Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Line: Land

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the amount his Department spent on (a) land acquisition and (b) compensation for Phase (i) 2a and (ii) 2b of HS2 from 20 July to 4 October 2023.

Huw Merriman: It is not practicable to make a precise division between land, property and businesses, as many property titles will encompass a combination of these. During the calendar months of August and September 2023, £11,770,997 was committed in relation to Phase 2a and 2b Land and Property. Any land and property that is no longer required will be sold, and a programme is being developed to do this.

Railways: Ticket Offices

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions (a) he and (b) officials in his Department had with train operating companies on ticket office closures before the train operating companies launched their consultations on ticket office closures.

Huw Merriman: The proposals to reform railway station ticket offices were industry led.Ministers and officials regularly hold meetings with stakeholders including the Rail Delivery Group and train operating companies.

Midland Main Line: Bedfordshire

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to open a new railway station at Wixams Bedfordshire.

Huw Merriman: Bedford Borough Council are promoting and funding a new railway station at Wixams, in Bedfordshire. The Department will continue to work with Bedford Borough Council in developing their plans for this scheme.

High Speed 2 Line: Birmingham and Greater Manchester

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 25 October 2023 to Question 203072 on Railways: Greater Manchester, how many and what proportion of the eight trains per hour terminate at (a) Birmingham and (b) Manchester.

Huw Merriman: No decisions have been made on the train service that will run when HS2 opens. These will be made in due course, taking advice from the industry, and be subject to consultation.

Flitwick Station

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what Network Rail's planned timetable is for completing accessibility work to Flitwick railway station.

Huw Merriman: As part of our recent Network North announcement, the Government confirmed £350m will be made available to improve the accessibility of our train stations.We are assessing over 300 nominations for Access for All funding beyond 2024, including a nomination for Flitwick railway station. If successful, the funding will create an obstacle free, accessible route from the station entrance to platforms. Successful nominations will be announced in due course.

East West Rail Line

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to expedite the re-opening of the Marston Vale Rail Line.

Huw Merriman: Following the collapse of Vivarail in late 2022, WMT will reintroduce a partial train service on the Marston Vale Line on 20 November 2023. Initially, four services will run in each direction Monday-Fridays and services will be focused on the morning and afternoon peaks, with rail replacement buses continuing to operate at other times. West Midlands Trains aims to operate a full service from early 2024.

West Coast Main Line

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 25 October 2023 to Question 203071 on West Coast Main Line, how much and what proportion of the 250,000 additional seat capacity will be on (a) the West Coast Mainline and (b) HS2 Phase 1.

Huw Merriman: The exact number of additional seats and the split between services will not be known until decisions are made on the train service when HS2 opens.

High Speed 2 Line: Costs

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) land acquisition and (b) compensation for Phase (i) 2a and (ii) 2b of the HS2 project (A) between 1 November 2023 and 31 March 2024 and (B) in the 2024-25 financial year.

Huw Merriman: The financial implications of the announcement on HS2 Ltd Land and Property are currently being considered following the announcement to cancel Phases 2a and 2b.

Aviation: Compensation

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help improve the timeliness of airline compensation payments.

Huw Merriman: The Department for Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have been clear that the aviation industry must meet its legal obligations to ensure consumers receive the best possible service. The CAA has the power to take enforcement action when required to ensure the industry meets its legal obligations. The Department has also committed, in its response to the Aviation Consumer Policy Reform Consultation, to further consultation on compensation and payment frameworks for flight delays, cancellations and denied boarding.

Bus Services: Mid Bedfordshire

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve bus services in Mid Bedfordshire constituency.

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to support local authorities provide access to bus services for remote communities in Mid Bedfordshire constituency.

Mr Mark Harper: The Government recognises the importance of transport provision in rural areas and is committed to finding solutions which ensure that local communities in these areas have viable and improved transport services. The Department for Transport is investing in the bus sector to deliver the ambitions of the National Bus Strategy to make bus services more reliable and cheaper. Over £1 billion was allocated to 34 Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) in the first phase of funding for LTAs to deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plans (BSIPs). All other LTAs received funding from the £160m Bus Service Improvement Plan Plus (BSIP+) fund announced in May 2023. On 4 October, as part of Network North, we announced a further £1 billion from redirected HS2 funding to level up bus services in the North and Midlands via BSIP, making them more frequent, more reliable, cheaper, and easier to use. We are also extending the £2 bus fare cap until the end of 2024, meaning we are investing nearly £600 million in total to cap bus fares across England since the scheme was launched. On top of this, we have announced that a new uplift of 60% will be added to Community Transport Operators’ (CTOs) Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) claims until 31 March 2025. Central Bedfordshire received £3,724,719 in Government funding to make improvements set out in their BSIP up to March 2025 in the first phase of BSIP funding. They have also been allocated £700,914 in the second phase of BSIP+ funding up to March 2025. Bedford Borough Council have been allocated £1,093,514 in the second phase of BSIP+ funding up to March 2025. LTAs in receipt of BSIP and/or BSIP+ funding may use the funding to target it on the actions that they – and local operators through their Enhanced Partnership (where relevant) – believe will deliver the best overall outcomes in growing long term patronage, revenues and thus maintaining service levels, whilst maintaining essential social and economic connectivity for local communities

Driving Licences: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 25 November 2022 to Question 93512, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland on its graduated driving licence pilot scheme.

Mr Mark Harper: We have not had recent discussions, however officials did discuss with Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland officials progress on their implementation of GDL in December 2022 and January 2023. We have asked to be updated on progress as appropriate.

Motor Vehicle Tyres (Labelling) (Enforcement) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the answer of 17 April 2023 to Question 176600 on Motor Vehicle Tyres (Labelling) (Enforcement) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020, what recent progress his Department has made on reviewing its stock of Retained EU Law.

Mr Mark Harper: The Department continues to actively review retained EU laws to identify and progress opportunities for reform by June 2026, when the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act’s powers expire. We have already taken steps, such as through four statutory instruments already laid so far that seek to revoke or reform transport retained EU laws, the detail of which is available online. This is in addition to revoking over 65 unnecessary transport retained EU laws through the Act itself, including the Port Services Regulations 2019.

Railways: Ticket Offices

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the Equality Impact Assessments undertaken by his Department on the recently proposed closures of rail ticket offices in England.

Huw Merriman: Government has asked operators to withdraw their proposals and for no ticket office closures to occur. These were industry led proposals to provide more help and advice in customer-focussed roles and operators made their Equality Impact Assessment’s (EIA) available online during the consultation period.

Railways: Ticket Offices

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of FTE vacancies there are in (a) ticket offices and (b) other station staff grades at (i) Avanti West Coast, (ii) Chiltern, (iii) C2C, (iv) East Midlands, (v) Greater Anglia, (vi) Great Western Railway, (vii) Govia Thameslink Railway, (viii) LNER, (ix) Northern Trains, (x) Southeastern, (xi) South Western Railway, (xii) Transpennine Express and (xiii) West Midlands Trains.

Huw Merriman: The Department does not routinely receive information from train operating companies on vacancies for roles at railway stations.

Northern Trains: Ticket Offices

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to reintroduce the sale of Advance Purchase on Departure fares from Northern Trains ticket offices.

Huw Merriman: This is an independent commercial decision by Northern: operators decide their own retailing strategy.

South Western Railway: Ticket Offices

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with South Western Railway on its ticket office consultation.

Huw Merriman: The proposals to reform railway station ticket offices were industry led. I regularly hold meetings with stakeholders, including train operating companies.

Railways: Ticket Offices

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the proportion of time that ticket offices were not open during their regulated hours at (a) Avanti West Coast, (b) Chiltern, (c) C2C, (d) East Midlands, (e) Greater Anglia, (f) Great Western Railway, (g) Govia Thameslink Railway, (h) LNER, (i) Northern Trains, (j) Southeastern, (k) South Western Railway, (l) Transpennine Express and (m) West Midlands Trains in each of the last 12 months.

Huw Merriman: The Department receives a range of management information to support effective contract management. This data is provided under terms of commercial confidentiality and cannot be released. It is the train operating companies' responsibility to comply with their regulated hours (schedule 17).

Railway Stations: Darlington

Peter Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking with (a) Network Rail and (b) other stakeholders to (i) improve the accessibility of the platform and (ii) reinstate the use of the train shed canopy at North Road railway station.

Huw Merriman: Transport authorities and the rail industry did not nominate North Road station for the next round of the Access for All programme when the Department sought nominations in 2022. However, the Department will continue to work with the rail industry in improving accessibility at the station. My officials have actively participated in conversations with Network Rail, the local authority and yourself on the re-instatement of the canopy, but at present, no funding has been identified to do so.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Broadcasting: Rural Areas

Simon Fell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the public service value of (a) broadcast TV and (b) radio service for those living in rural communities with minimal access to broadband.

Simon Fell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the value of broadcast services for individuals living in areas with limited broadband connections.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Government remains committed to the future of free-to-air TV and radio services. Millions of households across the UK rely on these services, particularly those living in rural communities. We also recognise the crucial role that free-to-air television and radio services play in the wider UK broadcasting system, in particular in helping ensure that public service content continues to be widely available and free-to-air to all audiences.The Government has recently launched a major research and engagement programme looking at how UK audiences will get their TV in the decades to come, including digital terrestrial television (DTT), satellite, cable, and online.Before any decisions about the future of terrestrial television are made, close consideration will be given to how any changes would impact audiences, and especially those who rely on DTT as their primary means of watching television.Currently, over 97% of premises across the UK have access to a superfast connection (>=30 Mbps), which in many cases is likely to be sufficient for audiences wishing to watch or listen online. In addition, by 2025, the Government’s target is to have at least 85% gigabit-capable broadband coverage, and to achieve nationwide coverage (99%+) as soon as possible thereafter, and by 2030. As of November 2023, over 78% of UK premises can now access gigabit-capable broadband, which represents significant progress since January 2019, when coverage was just 6%.

Arts and Charities: Inflation

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of rising prices on the financial position of (a) arts organisations, (b) heritage organisations and (c) charities.

Stuart Andrew: The Government continues to assess the impact of rising prices on arts, heritage and charitable organisations, and has taken action to support organisations in these sectors.Arts Council England, the arm’s-length body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport responsible for funding arts organisations, continues to monitor the situation through regular conversations with National Portfolio Organisations. Relevant insights are then shared with DCMS through our regular engagement with Arts Council England.The Heritage Pulse Survey, conducted by the National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with Historic England, also regularly shares updates and insights on heritage organisations. The department will keep engaging constructively across both sectors to monitor the impact of higher costs.The Government has acted to support arts, heritage and charitable organisations, including through the Energy Bill Discount Scheme, which continues to support all organisations with their energy bills until 31 March 2024.We also recognise that charities are seeing higher levels of demand for their services. That is why in the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced a package of over £100 million for charities and community organisations in England. This funding is split into two strands and is supporting organisations in need right now. The £76 million Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund has closed for applications, and is awarding funding to frontline organisations supporting vulnerable individuals and households. The second strand, the £25 million VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme, will support longer-term sustainability, and will launch later this year for applications.

BBC

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had discussions with the BBC Director General on publishing the 2004 Balen Report.

Sir John Whittingdale: The BBC is editorially and operationally independent from the government, and this is an issue for the BBC. The Secretary of State has not discussed the publication of the 2004 Balen Report with the Director General.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Equal Pay

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 49 of her Department's Annual Report and Accounts 2021-22, what steps she has taken to tackle the increase in the mean gender pay gap in her Department between 2020 and 2021.

Sir John Whittingdale: Following actions that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport set out in our gender pay gap report in 2021, the department’s mean gender pay gap reduced from 5.7% in 2021 to 3.3% in 2022.

Ministry of Justice

Young Offenders

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many youth conditional cautions were issued by (a) an authorised person and (b) a relevant prosecutor in each reporting year since 2010.

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time limit imposed for completing conditional elements of youth conditional cautions was in each reporting year since 2010.

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young offenders failed to comply with the conditions of their youth conditional caution in each reporting year since 2010.

Damian Hinds: Data on whether an authorised person or the relevant prosecutor issued a Youth Conditional Caution (YCC) is not held centrally by the Government.Conditions must be completed within a 12-week period. Data on the time limits applied to YCCs is not readily available – to extract and quality assure the data would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.If the offender does not complete their conditions within a reasonable time period, the offender can be prosecuted for the original offence. Data about rates of compliance with YCCs is not held centrally by the Government.

Electronic Tagging

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Electronic Monitoring: expansion and full service business case' published on 7 November 2023, what estimate he has made of the whole life cost of the chosen electronic monitoring future service delivery model.

Damian Hinds: The estimated whole-life cost of designing, planning, implementing, and operating the Electronic Monitoring Future Service proposed in the Full Business Case over its whole life is £857.6M. This includes costs from the beginning of the Programme in 2021/2022 through to the end of the new contracts in 2032/2033 including a potential 2-year extension.Where electronic monitoring can support an individual to remain in the community to serve their sentence or on court bail, it provides a cheaper alternative to prison. Electronic monitoring can also be used to support a robust community sentence as an alternative to a short custodial sentence. There is persuasive evidence that suspended and community sentences are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending and rehabilitating offenders.

Probation Service

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Question 30 of the oral evidence given by the Minister for Prisons and Probation to the Justice Committee on 24 October 2023, HC 1929, what estimate he has made of staffing underspends in the Probation Service.

Damian Hinds: We are not forecasting a staffing underspend in the Probation Service for this financial year.

Offenders: Rehabilitation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Oral Statement of 16 October 2023 on Prison Capacity, Official Report, columns 58 to 69, what steps his Department is taking to support the rehabilitation of offenders.

Damian Hinds: This Government is committed to tackling the causes of reoffending to keep our communities safe. The overall reoffending rate has decreased since 2010.Helping prison leavers to secure accommodation, employment, and substance misuse treatment on release is essential for rehabilitation and can significantly reduce their likelihood of reoffending. We are therefore investing in a range of interventions including delivering our temporary accommodation service so that prison-leavers have a stable base on release, offering more offenders the chance to work in prison and expanding the number of Incentivised Substance-Free Living wings so that we can support prisoners off drugs and into recovery.We are also delivering Commissioned Rehabilitative Services which provide offenders with tailored, community-based services to support rehabilitation and drive down reoffending.

Probation Service: Sick Leave

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many days staff in the probation service were absent as a result of (a) stress and (b) work-induced stress in 2022.

Damian Hinds: Between 01 January and 31 December 2022, 47,690 working days were lost due to stress. We are unable to make a distinction between sickness caused generally by stress. The average working days lost figure for stress related sickness was 2.7 per staff member. We are focused on ensuring our staff have the support they need to manage workplace stress, including support for staff and managers such as Occupational Health and the Employee Assistance Programme. Staff are also able to access additional support through staff networks, staff support leads and the HMPPS network of Mental Health Allies. This is balanced with a robust approach to attendance management to ensure that staff absence is kept to a minimum. We have exceeded our recruitment targets for the last three years. We recruited over 1,000 trainee probation officers in 2020/21, 1,500 2021/22 and a further 1,500 in 2022/23. Those staff are now starting to finish their training and take on full caseloads. Average working days lost per member of staff is calculated as number of working days lost to sickness divided by the average number of full-time equivalent staff for a year.

Probation Service: Staff

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of probation officers that have workloads that are too high in each region.

Damian Hinds: HMIP report Caseloads, Workloads and Staffing Levels in Probation Services, March 2021 is publicly available. This indicates a recommendation that caseloads should not exceed 50.Region by region analysis is shown below. As of 8th November 2023, 98% of Probation Officers hold less than 50 cases. RegionTotal number of Band 4 Probation OfficersNo. of Band 4 Probation Officers with under 50 cases (=% of Probation Officers with under 50 cases (=No. of Probation Officers with over 50 cases (>50)% of Probation Officers with over 50 cases (>50)East Midlands Region21721599.0820.92East of England27726093.86176.14Greater Manchester21321310000Kent Surrey Sussex Region17717297.1852.82London45943694.99235.01North East Region22522510000North West Region33533510000South Central17617498.8621.14South West23323299.5710.43Wales27527510000West Midlands Region37137099.7310.27Yorkshire and The Humber39439199.2430.76Grand Total3352329898.39541.61Individual officers will hold a mixture of cases corresponding to their available capacity at the time, their experience and specific expertise. The Probation Service is committed to providing a quality service in order to achieve its mission of protecting the public, supporting victims and reducing reoffending.We have implemented a Prioritisation Framework to support demand management on priority areas of delivery where there are workload and staffing challenges. We continue to run centralised recruitment campaigns in priority regions to help bolster the number of applications and improve time to hire for key operational roles. We have also offered financial support to incentivise staff to move permanently to areas with the most significant staffing challenges.

Prison Officers

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Question 13 of oral evidence taken before the Justice Committee on 24 October 2023, HC 1929, Session 2022–23, which prisons are (a) sending and (b) receiving prison officers under detached duty; and how many prison officers are affected.

Damian Hinds: On 8 November 2023, 385 prison officers at Bands 3-5 were deployed on detached duty. The prisons sending and receiving officers on detached duty on that date are listed in the table below: Prisons sending staff on detached dutyPrisons receiving staff on detached dutyBelmarshBerwynBirminghamBristolBrinsfordBullingdonBuckley HallCookham WoodBureElmleyCardiffLong LartinChannings WoodOnleyChelmsfordStockenColdingleySwalesideDartmoorThe MountDeerboltWandsworthDownviewWaylandDurhamWhitemoorEast Sutton ParkWoodhillErlestoke Exeter Featherstone Ford Frankland Haverigg Hindley Holme House Hull Humber Lancaster Farms Leeds Leicester Leyhill Lincoln Littlehey Low Newton Maidstone Manchester Moorland Morton Hall New Hall North Sea Camp Nottingham Pentonville Preston Risley Rochester Stafford Stanford Hill Stoke Heath Swansea Swinfen Hall Thorn Cross Usk The Verne Wakefield Wealstun Werrington Wetherby Whatton Winchester Wormwood Scrubs Wymott  Staff are deployed on detached duty as a tactical response to support other prisons when required, to cover staffing shortfalls, or to meet other operation requirements. It provides His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) with a vital contingency measure to assist in maintaining good order and security in prisons. Despite a challenging labour market, we have seen indications of an improving resource picture nationally within prisons, with a substantial increase of 701 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Band 3-5 Prison officers between June 2022-June 2023. In the same period, we have seen a fall in the resignation rate amongst Band 3-5 officers of 2.6 percentage points, down from 11.5% in June 2022 to 8.9% in June 2023.

Ministry of Justice: Women

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of civil servants on temporary contracts in his Department are women.

Mike Freer: The information is already available in the public domain:Permanent and temporary civil servants by sex, age band and department: 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Ministry of Justice: Women

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of SCS2 civil servants on full-time equivalent contracts in his Department are women.

Mike Freer: As of 30 June 2023, 42% of the SCS 2 cohort within the Ministry of Justice were declared as women.

Family Courts: Legal Representation

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many litigants in person there have been in the family courts in each year since 2013.

Mike Freer: Information on the legal representation status of applicants and respondents is published in Family Courts Statistics Quarterly, within the Family Court Tables: April to June 2023, Table 11. Please see link below. Family Court Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Prisoners' Release

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has made an impact assessment of the use of the End of Custody Supervised Licence.

Damian Hinds: End of Custody Supervised Licence is a targeted scheme that will only operate in certain areas for a limited period of time. We are continually monitoring its implementation and impact.

Open Prisons: Prisoners' Transfers

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason a pre transfer assessment was not carried out on each prisoner moved as part of the Restricted Open Estate Transfer Scheme launched in September 2023.

Damian Hinds: The Restricted Open Estate Transfer (ROET) scheme was active from 25 September to 9 October. ROET was limited to prisoners serving a standard determinate sentence with an automatic release point at the halfway point of their sentence who were between 7 and 28 days away from their conditional release date. Offender Management Units applied set criteria, the transfers were signed off by prison governors, and prisoners showing concerning or violent behaviour were excluded.

Open Prisons: Prisoners' Transfers

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what risk assessments were carried out on prisoners who were transferred to Category D prisons as part of the Restricted Open Estate Transfer Scheme launched in September 2023.

Damian Hinds: The Restricted Open Estate Transfer (ROET) scheme was active from 25 September to 9 October. ROET was limited to prisoners serving a standard determinate sentence with an automatic release point at the halfway point of their sentence who were between 7 and 28 days away from their conditional release date. Offender Management Units applied set criteria, the transfers were signed off by prison governors, and prisoners showing concerning or violent behaviour were excluded.

Prison Officers

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Question 13 of oral evidence taken before the Justice Committee on 24 October 2023, HC 1929, Session 2022–23, on what date the policy of detached duty was introduced; and for how long it is planned to continue.

Damian Hinds: Provision for detached duty is made in the Prison Service Instruction on Travel and Subsistence, which can be found at: PSI 15/2012 Travel & subsistence policy. This was published in 2012 and re-issued in 2013. We have no record of when the detached duty policy was first introduced, as it predates the creation of the Ministry of Justice in 2007. We understand, however, that detached duty may have been in place since the 1980s. Staff are deployed on detached duty as a tactical response to support other prisons when required, to cover staffing shortfalls, or to meet other operation requirements. It provides H M Prison & Probation Service with a vital contingency measure to assist in maintaining good order and security in prisons. There are no plans to withdraw it.

Prisons: Staff

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Question 9 of oral evidence taken before the Justice Committee on 24 October 2023, HC 1929, Session 2022–23, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the adequacy of the levels of pay of (a) prison officers and (b) operational support staff on (i) leaving and (ii) vacancy rates.

Damian Hinds: Recruitment and retention (leaving and vacancy rates) are a key consideration when formulating HMPPS pay proposals for the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB). However, levels of pay for Prison Officers and operational support staff are ultimately determined through the independent PSPRB process with the panel having considered evidence from both Government (HMPPS) and the recognised trade unions.

Ministry of Justice: Pentonville Prison

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department spent on (a) council tax, (b) security and (c) other maintenance costs for the empty Wellington Mews properties at HMP Pentonville in financial years (i) 2019-20, (ii) 2020-21 and (iii) 2022-23.

Damian Hinds: The table below provides the information you have requested: Financial YearCouncil TaxSecurityMaintenance Costs2019-20£75,9180£22,4942020-21£113,392002022-23£145,844£3,353.900

Department for Education

Higher Education

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of participation in higher education by 18 year-old students from England compared to those from (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales.

Robert Halfon: There is no data source which enables a direct comparison of higher education (HE) participation for each UK nation due to differences in data coverage and methodology.The most consistent measure available is the 18-year-old entry rate published by UCAS, which measures the proportion of 18-year-olds in the population that have been accepted to full-time undergraduate HE through UCAS. The data shows changes in the entry rates over time. However, around a third of young full-time undergraduate provision in Scotland (mainly full-time undergraduate provision at further education colleges) are not included in UCAS’s figures and so do not allow for a consistent comparison of HE participation with Scotland.The latest UCAS data can be found at: https://www.ucas.com/data-and-analysis/undergraduate-statistics-and-reports/statistical-releases-daily-clearing-analysis-2023.Alternative measures of participation which cover all HE are calculated by each of the UK nations. However, there are differences in methodology, such as differing coverage of pupils included in the measure and different age ranges for participation in HE. Data on these measures for each of the UK nations are signposted here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/participation-measures-in-higher-education-2021-to-2022.

T-levels

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to publish a T-Level 2023-2024 action plan.

Robert Halfon: The department published the 2022/23 T Level Action Plan in March 2023 and it is the department’s intention to publish the next T Level Action Plan in early 2024.

T-levels: Hounslow

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students started T-Level courses in Hounslow Local Authority in the (a) 2021-2022 and (b) 2022-2023 academic year.

Robert Halfon: The department does not currently publish T Level student recruitment data at this level.

Construction: Apprentices

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeship starts there were in the construction sector in the (a) 2021-22 and (b) 2022-23 academic year.

Robert Halfon: The most recent statistics on apprenticeship starts by employer sector cover the 2020/21 academic year and are published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-in-england-by-industry-characteristics.Data for 2021/22 and 2022/23 will be published in June 2024 and June 2025, respectively.Apprenticeship starts within the ‘Construction, Planning and the Built Environment’ sector subject area are available for the 2021/22 academic year and can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-and-traineeships/2021-22#content-7-heading.There is also provisional data for August to April of the 2022/23 academic year, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-and-traineeships/2022-23.Full year data will be published on 30 November 2023.

Apprentices

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to publish apprenticeship start data by (a) industry and (b) sector for the (i) 2021-22 and (ii) 2022-23 academic year.

Robert Halfon: The most recent statistics on apprenticeship starts by employer sector cover the 2020/21 academic year and are published on Explore Education Statistics at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-in-england-by-industry-characteristics.Data for 2021/22 and 2022/23 will be published in June 2024 and June 2025, respectively.Apprenticeship starts by sector subject area of the qualification are available for the 2021/22 academic year and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-and-traineeships/2021-22#content-7-heading.There is also provisional data for August to April of the 2022/23 academic year, which can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-and-traineeships/2022-23.Full year data will be published on 30 November 2023.

Special Educational Needs: Sign Language

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Education Health and Care Plans include (a) courses and (b) other forms of training in British Sign Language for (i) children and (ii) family members.

David Johnston: The department does not hold the data requested.The department collects data from local authorities on the number of children and young people with an Education, Health and Care Plan, but this does not include information on the contents of the plan.

Special Educational Needs: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children with SEND are not in formal education in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London as of 7 November 2023.

David Johnston: The department holds data on the number of children and young people with an Education, Health and Care plan, including the setting in which the child or young person is typically educated or where they are not in education or training for any reason. The information is available in the National Statistics publication at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans.The data can be broken down by region and local authority. Data is not available at parliamentary constituency level.

Home Office

Asylum: Children

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many unaccompanied asylum seeking children that have gone missing from hotels are unaccounted for as of 7 November 2023.

Robert Jenrick: UASC hotels are temporary accommodation that provide safeguarding for a child until they are ready to be transferred through the National Transfer Scheme (NTS) from an entry local authority to another local authority in the UK for ongoing care and support.The Home Office has put in place further funding throughout 2023-24 of £6,000 for every unaccompanied child moved from a UASC hotel to a local authority within five working days to encourage quicker transfers into local authority care.We take the safety of those in our care seriously. We have robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people in emergency interim hotels are safe and supported as we seek urgent placements with a local authority.The data requested cannot be provided as it comes from live operational databases that have not been quality assured.The most recent published data can be found at Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Bibby Stockholm: Legionnaires' Disease

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department became aware of legionnaire's disease on the Bibby Stockholm.

Robert Jenrick: As a temporary precaution to reduce the health risk as much as possible, on 11 August the Home Office went beyond the UKHSA advice and disembarked all 39 asylum seekers from the vessel to contingency asylum accommodation.

Refugees: Loans

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the value of refugee integration (a) loans and (b) repayments made since January 2007 is.

Robert Jenrick: Refugee Integration Loans were introduced in 2007 following a public consultation and is intended to help people with the costs of integrating into UK society. They are funded by the Home Office who make the initial decisions on applications. They are then administered and recouped by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).Refugee integration loans are interest-free loans with favourable repayment terms for individuals who are over 18 and meet the following eligibility criteria:a refugeeyou have humanitarian protectiona dependant of a refugee or someone with humanitarian protection Individuals are currently able to borrow between £100 and £500. Between £100 to £780 can be borrowed if submitting a joint application with a partner.The Home Office does not hold data for the value of refugee integration repayments made since January 2007 in a reportable format and it would require a manual search of records which would incur a disproportionate cost.

Asylum: Temporary Accommodation

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's policy is on alternative accommodation for asylum seekers.

Robert Jenrick: We are committed to ensuring that destitute asylum seekers are housed in safe, habitable, and fit for purpose accommodation, and that they are treated with dignity whilst in our care.

Asylum: Temporary Accommodation

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what policies are in place to ensure the safety of asylum-seeking (a) women and (b) children in asylum accommodation.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made a comparative assessment of potential risks to asylum seekers who are women across each type of accommodation used to house those asylum seekers in Wales.

Robert Jenrick: Across our estate there is an expectation that there will be mixed cohorts within our accommodation.Some of our core Initial Accommodation may be configured to provide segregated areas specially for families and singles. Similarly in our Dispersed Accommodation there will be a mix of family properties and Houses of Multiple Occupation that are specifically for either males, females or mothers and babies.Women with children who are in receipt of support are not required to share sleeping quarters with unrelated individuals of the opposite sex but may depending on the circumstances be placed in accommodation facilities that are used to house such individuals.The Home Office has published the Asylum Support Contracts Safeguarding Framework at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-support-contracts-safeguarding-framework.This framework sets out a joint, overarching approach, as well as the key controls and reporting mechanisms in place, across the AASC contracts, for safeguarding arrangements.

Refugees: Ukraine

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2023 to Question 202782, if she will make it her policy to ensure that there are no fees chargeable for any extension to the Ukrainian visa schemes.

Robert Jenrick: In line with the situation in Ukraine, working closely with the Ukrainian Government, as well as our international counterparts, we keep the need for a possible extension of UK sanctuary, beyond March 2025, under consistent review. This includes whether to require a fee. We are mindful that permission will start to expire, for the first arrivals under our Ukrainian schemes, from March 2025, and their need for certainty beyond that point to help them to plan ahead.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether all Afghan people who have been accepted for transfer to the UK will fly in on flights arranged by the Government.

Robert Jenrick: Resettlement of eligible Afghans remains a top priority for this government. As of June 2023, around 24,600 vulnerable people affected by the events in Afghanistan have been brought to safety.The UK government and our partners will arrange and fund travel for those accepted under our Afghan schemes as part of the resettlement and relocation process. Depending on the individual circumstances, this may be via charter or commercial flights.

Asylum: Applications

Joanna Cherry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of including time spent awaiting an asylum decision within the five year period applicants must be in the UK before they may apply for indefinite leave to remain.

Robert Jenrick: Whilst we do not have any plans to review the process by which refugees may apply for settlement protection, we have taken action to accelerate decision-making and rapidly speed up processing times to eliminate the backlog of people waiting for initial asylum decisions by the end of 2023. This will ensure asylum seekers are not left months or even years waiting for a decision.We have done this by streamlining and modernising the end-to-end process, with improved guidance and more focussed interviews; and continued enhancement of digital technology.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to publish the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration's report on the Afghan Resettlement Scheme.

Robert Jenrick: The Department is considering the ICIBI's findings and recommendations.The Secretary of State for the Home Department has not discussed a date for publication with the ICIBI, but the report will be laid before Parliament as soon as the consideration has been completed.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is taking steps to expedite applications for resettlement to the UK by Afghan nationals in Pakistan who are at risk of being removed to Afghanistan.

Robert Jenrick: We will continue to honour our commitment to bring eligible Afghans to the UK and plans are underway to relocate families as soon as possible. Afghans in third countries including in Pakistan who are eligible for resettlement to the UK continue to be supported by the UK Government, and flights from Pakistan to the UK continue to take place. However, we are unable to provide further operational details on this. The UK Government is aware of recent announcements made by the Government of Pakistan regarding Afghans being illegally present in Pakistan. We have engaged intensively with the Government of Pakistan to secure assurances that none of those eligible under Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) will be subject to deportation while they await relocation to the UK.

Asylum: Boats and Military Bases

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to house (a) asylum seekers and (b) refugees who are (i) women and (ii) children on (A) barges and (B) military bases.

Robert Jenrick: The sites are or will be accommodating single adult male asylum seekers between the ages of 18 and 65.

Domestic Abuse

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will introduce measures to help victims of domestic violence retrieve their possessions safely from their ex-partner's properties in circumstances when the police will not intervene.

Miss Sarah Dines: It is important that police officers recognise and understand domestic abuse in all its forms. Post-separation abuse is an established risk factor for homicide. The College of Policing authorised professional practice guidance is clear that officers should offer assistance to victims intending to recover property from a residence to ensure this process is carried out safely.Domestic abuse training plays a crucial role in police officers’ understanding and response to domestic abuse. The specialist Domestic Abuse Matters programme developed by the College of Policing and domestic abuse charities, has been delivered to the majority of forces to date. The Government is also now funding the rollout of the training to those forces who have yet to undertake it. It is, however, crucial that police forces continue to remain updated with domestic abuse training, particularly for new officers.

Sexual Offences: Exploitation

Matt Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help women who have experienced adult sexual exploitation.

Miss Sarah Dines: The Government is fully committed to protecting victims from, and tackling, the devastating harm associated with adult sexual exploitation.Adult sexual exploitation can occur across a spectrum of offending, from intimate partner violence, including domestic abuse and rape and sexual violence to serious and organised crime, including human trafficking. These offences are covered under a range of legislation.Due to the complex nature of adult sexual exploitation, victims can access tailored support across different services depending on the harm they have experienced.The Home Office is providing £1.36 million over three years to Changing Lives for their Net-Reach project, providing early intervention and targeted support for women and girls at high-risk of commercial online exploitation and the risk on online sexual harm. We are also providing over £180,000 in 2023/24 to Trevi Women to provide support to women with complex and multiple needs, including women seeking to exit on-street prostitution in Plymouth.The Government funded Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract also provides victims of modern slavery access to safehouse accommodation and a dedicated support worker who provides information on their rights and facilitates access to wider statutory support services, specifically related to the victim’s experience – this can be gender specific, such as assistance with accessing sexual health services as a result of sexual exploitation.

Independent Anti-slavery Commissioner

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will review the remit of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner.

Miss Sarah Dines: The remit of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) is set out in the 2015 Modern Slavery Act. In line with what is detailed in the Act, the role of the IASC will be to encourage good practice in:the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of slavery and human trafficking offences; andthe identification of victims of those offences.We look forward to working with IASC, who I am confident will set out their priorities in due course.

Abortion: Demonstrations

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish a timetable on the implementation of buffer zones around abortion clinics.

Chris Philp: The Public Order Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 2 May. Implementation of the Public Order Act measures is staggered.The Government respects the will of Parliament and is working to commence Safe Access Zones as soon as is practicably possible. We have been considering what needs to be done to ensure Safe Access Zones can be implemented as effectively as possible, with law enforcement agencies having a clear and consistent understanding around enforcement, and abortion service providers and protestors being clear as to what is expected under the new law.The timescales for commencing the new Section 9 offence of interference with access to, or provision of, abortion services will be confirmed in due course.

Abortion: Demonstrations

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide a timescale for the introduction of safe access zones near abortion clinics.

Chris Philp: The Public Order Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 2 May. Implementation of the Public Order Act measures is staggered.The Government respects the will of Parliament and is working to commence Safe Access Zones as soon as is practicably possible. We have been considering what needs to be done to ensure Safe Access Zones can be implemented as effectively as possible, with law enforcement agencies having a clear and consistent understanding around enforcement, and abortion service providers and protestors being clear as to what is expected under the new law.The timescales for commencing the new Section 9 offence of interference with access to, or provision of, abortion services will be confirmed in due course.

Investigations After Police Use of Force Review

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she took into account the findings of the Baroness Casey Review when formulating the terms of reference for her Department's review of investigations after police use of force.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with which third party organisations her Department consulted on the scope of the terms of reference for its review of investigations after police use of force.

Chris Philp: The Terms of Reference (ToR) for the review of investigatory arrangements following police use of force and police driving are broad and encompass the interests of both police officers and the public. They make it clear that the review will seek to understand whether the current framework serves to maintain public confidence in the police, in particular for those impacted by police use of force. This includes whether individuals are held to account appropriately. We are seeking to gather evidence on the issues covered in the ToR, from a wide range of stakeholders, including third parties.The Department is fully aware of the Casey Review and it was highlighted in representations made to the Home Secretary by the Independent Office for Police Conduct during the development of the Review’s ToR

Greater Manchester Police: Termination of Employment

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of police officers at the rank of (a) sergeant and (b) inspector have left Greater Manchester Police in each of the last five years.

Chris Philp: The Home Office collects and publishes data annually on the number of police officer leavers in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin, which can be accessed here: Police workforce England and Wales statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).Information on the number of police officers leaving the police service (as well as those transferring to other police forces), between the years ending March 2007 to 2023, broken down by Police Force Area and officer rank can be found in the ‘Leavers Open Data Table’ here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1172932/open-data-table-police-workforce-leavers-260723.ods

Abortion: Demonstrations

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her planned timetable is for bringing into force legislative provisions relating to safe access zones for abortion clinics.

Chris Philp: The Public Order Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 2 May. Implementation of the Public Order Act measures is staggered.The Government respects the will of Parliament and is working to commence Safe Access Zones as soon as is practicably possible. We have been considering what needs to be done to ensure Safe Access Zones can be implemented as effectively as possible, with law enforcement agencies having a clear and consistent understanding around enforcement, and abortion service providers and protestors being clear as to what is expected under the new law.The timescales for commencing the new Section 9 offence of interference with access to, or provision of, abortion services will be confirmed in due course.

Police: Suicide

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many serving police officers in each force took their own lives in each of the last eight quarters.

Chris Philp: The Home Office does not collect information centrally on how many serving police officers have taken their own lives.This information is held by individual Police Forces.

Members: Correspondence

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department plans to respond to the correspondence of 6 and 15 September 2023 from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare on behalf of a constituent and her children about their visa applications.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office responded to the correspondence on 26 September 2023.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Artificial Intelligence: Regulation

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, when she plans to publish a response to the consultation entitled A pro-innovation approach to AI regulation.

Paul Scully: Government is moving quickly to establish the right guardrails for AI to drive responsible, safe innovation. In March, we published the AI Regulation White Paper which set out our first steps towards establishing a regulatory framework for AI. We will be publishing our response to the consultation later this year, to ensure we can take into account the outcomes of the productive discussions of the AI Safety Summit held at the beginning of November. Since publishing the White Paper, we have taken rapid steps to implement our approach. We have established a central AI risk function in DSIT which will ensure that we can identify, measure and monitor existing and emerging AI risks. We also announced the world’s first AI Safety Institute which will carefully examine, test and evaluate new types of AI. This builds on our investment of £100 million in the Frontier AI Taskforce – more funding for AI safety than any other country in the world.

Social Media: Antisemitism

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Answer of 19 October 2023 to Question 202862 on Companies: Social Media, how many of the social media companies in question have provided written responses confirming the steps they are taking to tackle extremely violent and anti-Semitic content.

Paul Scully: The Government held a roundtable with social companies including YouTube, Meta, X, TikTok and Snapchat on 11 October to discuss the ongoing conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. During this meeting, companies were asked to follow-up in writing to confirm the steps they are taking to tackle extremely violent and antisemitic content. These companies have all since followed up in writing. The Government continues to engage directly with individual companies and will keep the current approach under review.

Artificial Intelligence: Public Sector

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to identify new uses for AI in the public sector.

Paul Scully: The UK government is taking a leading role promoting ethical, safe and responsible adoption of AI, as illustrated by our leadership of the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park last week. This includes the use of AI to improve public services and boost public sector productivity. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is looking to identify new uses for AI in the public sector. Examples include: the AI Life Sciences Accelerator Mission giving £100 million of funding to capitalise on AI’s game-changing potential in healthcare; the Department for Education providing up to £2million to Oak National Academy to improve and expand Artificial Intelligence tools for teachers; the Department of Health and Social Care using AI to identify language indicating mental distress in public social media posts and signposting people to a NHS-endorsed mental health service; and the Royal Navy using AI to connect with potential recruits faster through an AI-driven virtual recruiter.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Energy: Debts

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department plans to provide increased levels of financial support to consumers who have accumulated energy debt.

Amanda Solloway: The Government recognises the challenges posed by cost of living pressures, including the impact of energy bills and debt, and is already providing extensive financial support to households. The Government has spent nearly £40 billion protecting households and businesses from spiralling energy bills over last winter, covering around half a typical household’s energy bill, and this comes in addition to the £900 cost of living payments being delivered across 2023/24. This payment has already increased from the £650 payments provided the previous year.

Energy: Debts

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a temporary help to repay scheme that provides repayment matching and debt relief for energy arrears that cannot be afforded by consumers.

Amanda Solloway: The Government understands the challenges that are posed by cost of living pressures that includes energy bills and the impact of debt. However, energy prices have fallen significantly with the price cap more than halving from £4,279 at the start of this year to £1,834 since the start of October. This coincides with the £900 cost of living payment being provided by the Government across 2023/24, which has increased from the £650 provided the previous year. The Government continues to closely monitor energy prices and will keep support schemes under review.

Energy: National Policy Statements

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to her Department's consultation entitled Planning for new energy infrastructure: revisions to National Policy Statements, when she plans to publish the revised National Policy Statement EN-5.

Graham Stuart: The Government carried out a public consultation which closed on 23 June and is on track to present the updated National Policy Statements to Parliament and publish them alongside the response to the Electricity Networks Commissioner’s Report later this month.

Tidal Power

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent steps her Department has taken to increase the use of tidal stream renewable energy technologies; and whether she has had recent discussions with her international counterparts on the use of this technology.

Graham Stuart: Tidal stream is eligible for the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme, the UK’s main mechanism for supporting low-carbon generation. In the last CfD allocation round a record 11 tidal stream contracts were secured with a capacity of over 53MW. This is a world-leading deployment in Scottish and Welsh waters, and the first time that tidal stream power has been procured at this scale. The Department engages on tidal stream internationally across Europe and beyond, including at the Ocean Energy Europe conference in October 2023.

Renewable Energy: Finance

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she plans to amend the methodology used to set administrative strike prices for all renewable technologies in the Contracts for Difference allocation round six.

Graham Stuart: The Government reviews auction parameters, including Administrative Strike Prices (ASP) and the ASP methodology, ahead of every Contracts for Difference Allocation Round. Considering recent price volatility and that no offshore wind technologies were successful in Allocation Round 5, the Government has conducted a thorough review of its cost assumptions ahead of Allocation Round 6. The Government is committed to ensuring that it sets the parameters at a level that would allow sustainably priced projects in the pipeline to compete in the auction. The ASP methodology will be published alongside core parameters in November 2023.

Energy: Standing Charges

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring energy providers to charge uniform standing charges for domestic users in all regions.

Amanda Solloway: Ofgem, as the independent regulator, sets standing charges as part of the price cap, and standing charges include the network charges that Ofgem sets under the price controls. Network charges vary by region to reflect the different costs of supplying consumers in each region. Ofgem carried out an assessment of moving away from regional charging and that showed that it would risk an increase in overall costs and reduce accountability to the customers being served.

Offshore Industry: Storms

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of offshore oil and gas workers that were affected by the suspension of helicopter transport services as a result of Storm Babet.

Graham Stuart: The Department is unable to estimate the number of offshore oil and gas workers that were affected by the suspension of helicopter flights because of Storm Babet. The Government is aware that some workers were impacted for up to four days, but also understands that flights offshore have since returned to normal operation. There are approximately 9,000 workers offshore at any given time.

Offshore Industry: Storms

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the impact of Storm Babet on operations in the offshore oil and gas industry.

Graham Stuart: The UK’s offshore oil and gas industry is well-prepared for extreme weather through its long history of North Sea operations, with regular winter preparedness workshops held between regulators, industry trade bodies, and their members. Storm Babet had a limited impact on offshore oil and gas industry operations overall. One reported incident involved the Stena Spey semi-submersible, which lost four of its eight anchors. The Government is aware that another offshore installation lost an anchor. Additionally, storm-related disruption to helicopter flights impacted workers for up to four days, although flights have since returned to normal operation.

Electricity

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of the liquidity of the electricity wholesale market.

Graham Stuart: The Department is aware that in recent years liquidity has been falling in the GB wholesale electricity market which has made it more challenging for suppliers and generators to manage their financial risks. Concerns over low liquidity were elevated in 2022/23 due to high and volatile wholesale energy prices, which have now stabilised somewhat. As the electricity market regulator, Ofgem is responsible for ensuring that the wholesale electricity market is sufficiently liquid to provide efficient outcomes for consumers. The Department will also consider how to ensure liquidity is maintained in future market arrangements through its Review of Electricity Market Arrangements.

Warm Home Discount Scheme: Private Rented Housing

Mick Whitley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of allowing private tenants who would otherwise qualify for the Warm Homes Discount but are ineligible because they pay for their energy costs through their landlord to receive the Warm Homes Discount as a direct payment into their bank account.

Amanda Solloway: I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to the hon Member for Liverpool, Walton (Dan Carden) on 7 September 2023 to Question UIN 196887.

Electric Cables

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will commission a working group to consider advances in cable ploughing technology before publishing a new EN-5 Electricity Networks National Policy Statement.

Graham Stuart: The Government sets the rules for a robust and independent planning process. The design and development of energy transmission infrastructure, including which technology would be used for construction of a project, is a matter for the developer, with the implications of that choice considered through the planning process. The Government carried out a full public consultation on its National Policy Statements - including EN-5 - earlier this year and will shortly be publishing them and laying them before Parliament ahead of designation.

Electricity

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of restoring the market making obligation on major energy suppliers to improve liquidity in the wholesale electricity market.

Graham Stuart: As the electricity market regulator, Ofgem is responsible for ensuring that the wholesale electricity market is sufficiently liquid to provide efficient outcomes for consumers. Ofgem monitors liquidity in physical and financial markets and explores options to improve it. Alongside this, through the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements, the Department is considering how to ensure liquidity is maintained as the UK transitions to future market arrangements.

Energy Supply

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Energy Emergencies Committee has put forward proposals for an outcomes-focused physical network resilience standard.

Graham Stuart: Members of the Energy Emergencies Executive Committee (E3C) have developed proposals for an outcomes-focused physical network resilience standard. The standard will set public and government expectations and industry targets to guide planning and funding decisions by industry and the regulator, providing a consistent approach to emergency planning and management for both national and local severe weather events. This was a commitment in the Storm Arwen Review Final Report.

Products: Carbon Emissions

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the advertising of high-carbon products on (a) consumer choice and (b) the ability of the Government to fulfill its net zero ambitions.

Graham Stuart: The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is responsible for regulating advertising in the UK across traditional forms of media and operates independently of the Government. The ASA takes environmental issues seriously and addresses them through the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) Codes, which set the rules and standards for advertising to the marketing industry.

Tidal Power: Finance

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) maintaining a ringfence for tidal stream renewable energy technologies in allocation round six of the Contracts for Difference scheme and (b) setting a target of 1GW for tidal stream technologies by 2035.

Graham Stuart: The Government is currently developing auction parameters for Allocation Round 6 of the Contracts for Difference scheme, including any for tidal stream, taking into account evidence of the pipeline of available projects. The Government will publish core parameters for the round later this month, and final parameters, including the budget, ahead of the round opening in March 2024.The Government will review the merits of setting an ambition for tidal stream deployment.

Electricity Interconnectors: Scotland

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) energy companies and (b) the German Energy Agency on a subsea cable to transfer renewable energy from Scottish offshore windfarms to Germany.

Graham Stuart: On 3 November 2023, my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State, signed a new partnership with Germany’s Vice Chancellor, Mr Robert Habeck. The partnership reaffirmed the UK and Germany's shared ambition to net zero, and committing to enhanced cooperation on offshore wind and electricity interconnection. Officials have also met German industry to discuss projects which are in an early stage of development.

Electricity: Standing Charges

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the Answer of 23 October 2023 to Question 203412 on Electricity: Standing Charges, whether costs are calculated according to the location of where energy is (a) produced and (b) landed.

Amanda Solloway: The way in which network charges are set, including questions about how network charges reflect where energy is produced and landed, is a matter for Ofgem, as the independent regulator.

Energy Supply: Consumers

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring energy suppliers to credit domestic users where energy is (a) produced and (b) landed in their locality.

Amanda Solloway: The way in which network charges are set, including questions about how network charges reflect where energy is produced and landed, is a matter for Ofgem, as the independent regulator.

Energy: Medical Equipment

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department are taking to provide financial support for energy costs to people with (a) motor neurone disease and (b) other conditions who run assistive medical equipment in their homes.

Amanda Solloway: The Government keeps under continual review the financial support it provides for the differing energy needs within different communities and prioritises support for the most vulnerable. Last winter the government paid around half of the typical household's energy Bill. And going into this winter, The Government has in place multiple schemes to support households with energy costs. These include the Winter Fuel Payment, Warm Home Discount, Disability Cost of Living Payment and the Cost-of-Living Payment for those on means tested benefits which has increased from up to £650 in 2022/2023 to £900 in 2023/2024. Additionally, the default tariff price cap and Energy Price Guarantee will continue work together to protect consumers as the EPG will remain in place as a safety net until March 2024 should wholesale prices increase significantly during this period.

Energy Ombudsman

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the powers of the Energy Ombudsman to implement its rulings in (a) full and (b) a timely manner.

Amanda Solloway: The Energy Ombudsman is an independent, not for profit company appointed by Ofgem as the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body for the energy sector under the Alternative Dispute Resolution for Consumer Disputes Regulations 2015. As the Competent Authority, it is the responsibility of Ofgem to carry out an assessment of the Energy Ombudsman’s performance. Ofgem does this every two years to ensure the company meets the approval criteria as an ADR body. A copy of the most recent assessment for the period of 2019-2021 is available on Ofgem’s website at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/biennial-assessment-ombudsman-services-under-adr-regulations-2019-2021.

Xlinks Morocco-UK Power Project

Mrs Heather Wheeler: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the implications for her polices of the planned installation of a (a) sub-sea electricity generation and (b) storage connection between the UK and Morocco by 2030.

Graham Stuart: The Government is interested in the Xlinks UK-Morocco Power Project, which is a proposed large scale onshore wind, solar and battery storage site in Morocco that would exclusively supply renewable power to the GB grid via high voltage direct current subsea cables. The Government recognises the potential of the project and is now developing an Outline Business Case, which is a more detailed phase of evaluating – without commitment – the viability and merits of the project and how it could contribute to the UK’s energy security.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Sewage: Waste Disposal

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will introduce legislation to require water companies to report annually on the number of animals killed as a result of raw sewage discharges.

Rebecca Pow: This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only. We do not have plans to introduce legislation that will require this of water companies. However, this Government is clear that the volume of sewage being discharged into our waters is unacceptable. That is why our Plan for Water sets out more investment, stronger regulation and tougher enforcement to tackle pollution and clean up our water. Alongside this, our Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan sets clear and specific targets for water companies, regulators and the Government, to work towards the long-term ambition of eliminating ecological harm from storm overflows. This will protect biodiversity at both a local and national scale. We have also set a world-leading, legally binding target to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030. This target will drive wide-ranging actions to deliver nature recovery. We know that to meet our targets we will need large-scale habitat restoration, creation and improved connectivity; to tackle pressures on species including pollution, unsustainable use of resources and climate change; and targeted action to recover specific species. Action to restore or create freshwater habitats will support species in our indicator that live in and rely on lakes and rivers such as kingfishers, silver bream, perch, and minnow.

Cats: Theft

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals to make the abduction of cats a criminal offence.

Trudy Harrison: We would be supportive of legislation on pet abduction when parliamentary time allows. We have listened carefully to views expressed on the pet abduction measures during the passage of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill including adding cats. We will take this feedback into consideration when delivering any measure.

Wildlife: Nature Conservation

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Fifth Special Report of Session 2022-23 of the Environmental, Food and Rural Affairs Committee on Species Reintroduction: Government response to the Committee's Fifth Report, published on 27 October 2023, HC 1931, on what criteria her Department decides when it is appropriate to support the reintroduction of recently lost former native species.

Trudy Harrison: The reintroduction of any species in England should follow our published guidance and Code for Reintroductions, which provides the best practice for assessing the benefits and impacts of releasing a species into the wild. The appropriateness of a reintroduction proposal will be highly dependent on the specific circumstances in which it is made, for example the surrounding environmental conditions, socio-economic circumstances, or species already present in that location. As such, Natural England assess applications for release licences on a case-by-case basis, ensuring that any applications align to the Code.

Cats: Theft

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking tackle cat theft, in the context of the withdrawal of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking tackle dog theft in the context of the withdrawal of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with animal charities on the theft of (a) pedigree and (b) other cats.

Trudy Harrison: The cross-Government Pet Theft Taskforce published their findings in September 2021 with input from animal welfare groups and experts in relevant fields including the issue of cat theft. We would be supportive of legislation on pet abduction when parliamentary time allows. We have listened carefully to views expressed on the pet abduction measures during the passage of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill including adding cats. We will take this feedback into consideration when delivering this measure.

Flood Control: Finance

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the £5.2 billion funding to build new flood defences announced in her Department's Flood and coastal erosion risk management policy statement, published in July 2020, how much of that funding (a) has been allocated and (b) is available.

Rebecca Pow: We are in the third year of the current 6-year £5.2billion Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) investment programme. The funding can be spent on projects that better protect properties in England as well as the development of future projects. At the end of March 2023, the Environment Agency estimated that approximately £1.5 billion of this funding has been invested with over 200 flood risk schemes completed. Over £800 million will be invested in the current financial year until March 2024 and the remaining money is indicatively allocated to projects until the end of March 2027.

Flood Control: Finance

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department's £200 million innovative resilience programme, how much of that funding (a) has been awarded to projects and (b) is available.

Rebecca Pow: In the 2020 Budget, the Government announced a £200 million Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme. The programme runs from 2021 to 2027, with the projects already underway. £150 million has been allocated to 25 local areas across England to trial and demonstrate which practical innovative actions can work to improve resilience to flooding and coastal erosion.£36 million is dedicated to the coastal transition accelerator programme with projects in East Riding of Yorkshire, North Norfolk, Dorset, and Cornwall, where they are exploring opportunities that support communities and businesses to adapt to a changing coast.A further £8 million is allocated to the adaptation pathways programme for work on long term planning for climate adaptation in the Thames and Humber estuaries, the Severn Valley, and Yorkshire.The remaining available funding is being used to provide strategic support across all the projects and the evaluations of the programme.

Flood Control: Finance

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Multi-billion pound investment as government unveils new long-term plan to tackle flooding, published on 14 July 2020, how much of the up to £170 million she planned to spend to accelerate work on shovel-ready flood defence schemes that would begin construction in 2020 or 2021 (a) has been spent and (b) remains to be spend as of November 2023.

Rebecca Pow: The £170m investment for work on shovel-ready schemes was commenced in 2021, as part of a package of investment measures by Government to boost the economic recovery following the covid pandemic. All 23 projects that form part of this scheme are underway and funding is being invested into these. Between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2022 the Government invested £87m into these schemes. The data from 1 April 2022 has not been classified to the sufficient level of detail to provide a response in the time frame of a Parliamentary Question. Please write to the Environment Agency directly if you still require this information. Further details on the current investment programme and projects completed can also be found in the Flood and coastal erosion risk management report: 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Water Supply: New Forest

Sir Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will (a) take steps with stakeholders to understand the (i) circumstances which led to Southern Water cutting off water supplies to households in the Waterside area of New Forest East constituency during the evening of Thursday 2 November 2023, (ii) reasons for which the water supply was not resumed until the morning of Sunday 5 November and (iii) reasons for the lack of advance warning to customers, (b) make an assessment of the adequacy of support given by Southern Water to vulnerable customers whose water had been cut off and (c) make it her policy to require water companies to increase their resilience levels to ensure they can deliver water to customers during periods of similarly heavy rainfall in the future.

Rebecca Pow: On 2 November, the effects of Storm Ciaran were seen at Testwood Water Treatment Works in Hampshire. The heavy rainfall and consequent flooding impacted water quality, which meant that it was not possible for the Treatment Works to effectively treat the volume of water needed to maintain supplies. This included to properties in the Waterside area of the New Forest. Southern Water attempted to minimise the impact but as soon as it become apparent that supply would be affected, notifications were provided to customers, through their website and social media.Once flooding reduced, Southern Water increased supplies slowly to safeguard safety and drinking water quality standards. Customers had water supply restored gradually over the course of Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 November. Arrangements were put in place to support those customers off supply, including the opening of three bottled water stations, and regular deliveries to vulnerable customers.Throughout the water supply outage, my officials engaged closely with Southern Water to ensure steps were taken to resolve the incident as soon as possible. I was regularly briefed on the emerging situation and ensured that Southern Water was supporting customers in the impacted area, particularly those who are vulnerable.And on 8 November, I met with Lawrence Gosden, CEO Southern Water, to consider what lessons could be learned from this water supply incident and the actions Southern Water are taking avoid future interruptions at Testwood Water Treatment Works. The company is also providing a detailed report to the Drinking Water Inspectorate, who will carry out a full assessment on the event.Ensuring a plentiful supply of water is a government priority with our Plan for Water, published in April 2023, setting out how we will enhance water supply infrastructure and improve resilience to drought as well as managing water demand. Earlier this year, regional water resources groups and water companies, including Southern Water, consulted on their draft Water Resource Management Plans. Within their plans, water companies must consider all options, including demand management and water resources infrastructure for at least the next 25 years.Water companies are also using the £469 million made available by Ofwat in the current Price Review period (2020-2025) to investigate strategic water resources options, that are required to improve the resilience of England’s water supplies. Ofwat also recently announced that water companies are bringing forward £2.2 billion for new water infrastructure delivery, over the next two years, with £350 million worth of investment in water resilience schemes.Where a company does not meet their performance expectations, Ofwat, the independent water regulator, will take decisive regulatory action. For example, due to underperformance in 2022-23 across several areas, including on supply interruptions and customer satisfaction, draft decisions by Ofwat will mean Southern will return over £42 million to its customers in the 2024-25 financial year.Government and regulators will continue to closely monitor Southern Water’s Performance and will not hesitate to hold them to account if they fall short.

Cabinet Office

Infected Blood Inquiry

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his Department's expected timescale is for receiving the final report of Sir Brian Langstaff on the contaminated blood inquiry.

Alex Burghart: I refer the Honourable Member to the written ministerial statement of 23 October 2023.https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2023-10-23/debates/23102320000007/InfectedBloodInquiry

Cabinet Office: Holiday Leave

Chris Stephens: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications of the Employment Appeal Tribunal ruling in the 2017 case of Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council v Willetts & Ors for the calculation of holiday pay entitlement for staff in his Department.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to reply to the letter of 22 August 2023 from the Public and Commercial Services Union on the ruling in Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council v Willetts & Ors.

Jeremy Quin: The Cabinet Office is working closely with our shared services provider (SSCL) to implement a solution. Early indications are that this will take place in Spring 2024.I have informed the Public and Commercial Services Union that a full response to their letter of 22 August 2023 will be sent in due course.

Civil Servants: Pay

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Civil Service cost of living payments to civil servants that retired in the financial year 2022-2023.

Jeremy Quin: I refer the Honourable Member for Salford and Eccles to the answer I gave on 25th October in response to PQ203635.

Infected Blood Inquiry

Chloe Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has had recent discussions with the Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry on the reasons for which the final report of the inquiry will not be published until 2024; what steps he is taking to implement a compensation framework for infected blood victims; and if he will make a statement.

Wayne David: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent progress the Government has made on implementing the recommendations in the report by (a) Sir Robert Francis entitled Compensation and Redress for the Victims of Infected Blood: Recommendations for a Framework, published on 7 June 2022, and (b) the Infected Blood Inquiry entitled Second Interim Report, published on 5 April 2023; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Quin: The Government continues to make progress and is working to be ready to respond soon after the publication of the final report of the Infected Blood Inquiry, following the interim payments we have already made. On 23 October I issued a public statement on the Government’s current position in responding to the Infected Blood Inquiry. The timetable of the Inquiry is a matter for the chair. I will update the House as soon as I have further information to provide.

Treasury

Central Bank Digital Currencies

Mr David Davis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of a UK central bank digital currency on the right to privacy.

Andrew Griffith: Individuals’ privacy, user control and the proper use of data in line with UK data protection laws are of paramount importance to the design of any digital currency. A digital pound would be subject to rigorous standards of privacy and data protection. Neither the Government nor the Bank of England would have access to personal data, nor be able to see how consumers use their money.The Government has committed to bring forward legislation in Parliament prior to any Digital Pound being introduced.The Government and Bank of England consulted on these privacy features of the potential digital pound over February-June 2023, and are currently reviewing the feedback received. A consultation response will be published in due course.

Financial Services: Environment Protection

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Green Finance Strategy, when the Government plans to publish the consultation on introducing a Green Taxonomy for the UK.

Andrew Griffith: The 2023 Green Finance Strategy set out the Government’s commitment to deliver a UK Green Taxonomy to support an increase in financing for activities supporting the transition to net zero and delivering on UK environmental objectives. It also announced that we expect to consult on the Taxonomy in Autumn 2023.

Drinks: Industry

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which representatives of the drinks industry (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have met since 1 August 2023.

Gareth Davies: Treasury ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at the link below.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel

Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information his Department gathers on the potential impact of alcohol duty increases on SME (a) winemakers and (b) spirits producers.

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of the alcohol duty increases announced in August 2023 on inflation.

Gareth Davies: The Government publishes tax information and impact notes (TIINs) for tax policy changes when the policy is final or near final. The summary of impacts from the latest changes to alcohol duty at Spring Budget 2023 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-alcohol-duty-rates/alcohol-duty-rate-changes and https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reform-of-the-alcohol-duty-system/reform-of-alcohol-duty-rates-and-reliefs The Government has undertaken the biggest reform of alcohol duties for over 140 years and has introduced a new, simplified alcohol duty system based on the common-sense principle of taxing alcohol by strength. The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the reforms and will evaluate the impact of the new rates and structures three years after the changes took effect on 1 August 2023. This will allow time to understand the impacts on the alcohol market, and for HMRC to gather useful and accurate data with which to evaluate the effects of the reform.

Energy: Debts

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to introduce a temporary Help to Repay scheme for energy debts in the Autumn Statement 2023.

Gareth Davies: Through the energy crisis, the Government has provided unprecedented support for consumers, including by paying nearly half of household bills between October 2022 and June 2023, saving households £1,500 on average. This is in addition to the benefits uprating and Cost of Living Payments in 2023-24, helping more than 8 million UK households on eligible means tested benefits, 8 million pensioner households and 6 million people across the UK on eligible disability benefits.

Public Sector: Mileage Allowances

Nick Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans his Department has to assist public sector organisations to support workers using their own cars for work.

Gareth Davies: Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAPs) are used by employers to reimburse an employee’s expenses for business mileage in their private vehicle, including public sector workers.  These rates are also used by self-employed drivers to claim tax relief on business mileage (simplified motoring expenses). The AMAP rates are not mandatory, and employers can choose to pay more or less than the AMAP rate. It is therefore ultimately up to employers to determine the rate at which they reimburse their employees, including public sector employers. In considering changes to the AMAP/simplified motoring expenses rates, the Government has to balance support for individuals with the responsible management of public finances, which fund our essential public services. However, the Government recognises that transport is a major cost for individuals and families. At Spring Statement 2022 the Government announced a temporary 12-month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5p per litre. In order to continue supporting all motorists, it will extend the 5p fuel duty cut, which is worth £100 to the average driver over the next year. Like all taxes and allowances, the Government keeps the AMAP rate under review, and any changes will be announced at a future fiscal event.

Off-payroll Working

Patricia Gibson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of not applying IR35 rules for domestic contractors where a contract is forecast to end within a two week period.

Victoria Atkins: The off-payroll working rules are designed to ensure that individuals working like employees but through their own company pay broadly the same income tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) as those who are directly employed. The government considered the suggestion of an exemption based on the length of a contract when consulting on the reforms to the off-payroll working rules, but concluded that it was not appropriate. HMRC’s employment status manual (ESM0548) explains the role of the length of engagement in determining employment status.

Private Companies: Taxation

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many private limited companies that formed in 2021 have filed accounts with HMRC as of 7 November 2023.

Victoria Atkins: HMRC has interpreted this question to refer to details of Corporation Tax (CT) returns filed by companies incorporated in 2021. The deadline for filing all of those CT returns has not yet been reached, and some companies will have, or may still inform HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) that they are not trading, therefore HMRC would not expect returns from them. Given this, up to date and accurate information cannot be provided.

State Retirement Pensions

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of individuals that have applied to make contributions to fill gaps in their state pension contributions are waiting to commence those contributions as of 8 November 2023.

Victoria Atkins: Information on how many people have paid voluntary National Insurance contributions and are waiting to have those contributions credited to their National Insurance record is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

PAYE: Welsh Language

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Welsh language helpline for PAYE employer enquiries.

Victoria Atkins: To comply with the Welsh Language Act 1993, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) provides a number of Welsh language helplines The one for PAYE employer enquiries (Treth Incwm, Hunanasesiad a mwy), can be accessed Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5.00 pm on 0300 200 1900. Details on how Welsh speakers can contact HMRC can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-revenue-customs/contact HMRC publishes its performance data monthly and quarterly:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-monthly-performance-reportshttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-quarterly-performance-updates

Self-employed

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people were registered as self-employed in each year between 2017 and 2022.

Victoria Atkins: Estimates of the number of self-employed individuals is published yearly in the Survey of Personal Income (SPI), which is based on information held by HMRC on individuals who could be liable to UK Income Tax. The estimates for the tax years 2017-2018 to 2020-2021can be found at the following link: Table 3.10.  NotesThe tables are based on individuals with sources of self-employment income, whether taxpayers or not, and the source is the Survey of Personal Incomes (SPI).Estimates for 2018-2019 to 2020-2021 are not comparable with the estimate for 2017-2018 due to a methodological change. From the 2018-2019 SPI, the grossing factors were revised to better reflect the population of individuals submitting Self Assessment returns.Further information can be found here supporting documentation.

VAT: Defibrillators

Derek Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the cost to the public purse of waiving VAT on (a) defibrillators and (b) associated apparatus.

Victoria Atkins: The cost of relieving VAT on defibrillators is uncertain owing to the lack of data on purchases of defibrillators and associated apparatus, and on purchasers who are able to reclaim the VAT on these purchases. Businesses are not required to provide information at a product level in their VAT returns, as this would impose an excessive administrative burden; HMRC does not therefore hold this data. All taxes are kept under review; any policy measure would be costed in the usual way. The Government is currently inviting community organisations to bid for funding as part of a £1 million grant scheme that expands public access to AEDs, particularly in public places where they are most needed. In addition, last year the Government committed to supplying state-funded schools in England with defibrillators to make sure there is a device in every school, with deliveries completed in June 2023. This means that every state-funded school in England, over 21,500 schools, now has access to an AED.

Sanitary Protection: VAT

Gill Furniss: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that the cost saving arising from the removal of VAT on period products is passed onto consumers.

Victoria Atkins: The Government keeps all taxes and reliefs under review and considers a range of evidence, including data and research on factors like pricing, when assessing the effects of tax changes. While the Government does not control prices, a VAT relief may contribute to the conditions for price reductions. The Government continues to monitor the effects of the zero rate on period products to aid the policymaking process and is looking into whether savings are being passed on to consumers. HMT and HMRC work closely together to integrate the findings of their monitoring and evaluation processes into future tax relief policy.

Suicide

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to increase funding for suicide prevention in the 2023 Autumn Statement.

Ian Byrne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to provide ringfenced funding to (a) local authorities and (b) integrated care systems for suicide prevention services at the Autumn Statement.

John Glen: Government is committed to mental health support and suicide prevention. In September, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) published the new Suicide prevention strategy for England and launched the Suicide Prevention Grant Fund which makes available £10 million from 2023 to 2025 to support suicide prevention. It is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs) to plan services to meet the needs of their communities, including deciding how much funding they provide for mental health services. It would not be appropriate to comment on the content of the 2023 Autumn Statement at this time.

Government Departments: Cost Effectiveness

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress his Department has made on the implementation of the Government's Efficiency and Savings Review.

John Glen: The Government’s Efficiency and Savings Review concluded at the Spring Budget. Through it, departments reprioritised to ensure the government can continue to protect the vital frontline services that matter most to the public despite the impacts of higher inflation. In line with wider financial delegations set by HM Treasury, it is the responsibility of departments and their functions to implement any agreed efficiencies and savings, including those that were agreed at the Efficiency and Savings Review.

Wales Office

Research: Wales

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether he plans to take steps to promote research in Welsh universities in the context of the Welsh universities showcasing event held on 17 October 2023.

David T C Davies: I was delighted to welcome all eight of the universities in Wales and the Open University to an event showcasing the sector at Lancaster House on 17 October 2023. The event highlighted the strength and breadth of Welsh university research and its ability to deliver tangible benefits to communities in Wales, the UK and across the world. I am committed to ensuring Welsh universities play a vital role in positioning the UK at the forefront of research and development, and I firmly believe the event has helped make progress towards this goal. Senior representatives from each of UKRI’s research councils were present at the event and had the opportunity to see just some of the research excellence found across Wales’ areas of academic strength. The UK Government is committed to supporting the higher education sector, demonstrated by our ongoing investment of £39.8 billion in research and development between 2022 and 2025. Moreover, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) recently announced a £60 million Regional Innovation Fund to support regions that have lower levels of research and development investment. As part of this, the Welsh Government will receive £3.4 million in Barnett consequentials. I hope this will be invested in the Welsh higher education sector. Wales is already leading the way in areas as diverse as MedTech, AgriTech and Net Zero and also has a world-leading compound semiconductor cluster based in South Wales. I will continue to champion the strengths of the Welsh university sector. My officials regularly meet with their counterparts in DSIT and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). Discussions with the Wales Innovation Network (WIN) are ongoing on how to build on the momentum created by the event held at Lancaster House on 17 October 2023.

Northern Ireland Office

Floods: Northern Ireland

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will hold discussions with the Department for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland on taking steps to help support businesses affected by flooding in Newry, Mourne and Down District.

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he plans to meet businesses affected by recent flooding in (a) Newry and (b) Downpatrick.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The floods that occurred have been devastating for those that have suffered the destruction of their homes and businesses. Both Lord Caine and I have separately visited affected areas over the past few days.In the absence of the Executive, which could have acted swiftly, the UK Government will make available up to £15m of support through the reallocation of existing Northern Ireland funding. This will help with clean-up costs and support businesses to resume trading.We will continue to work closely with the NI Civil Service and local councils to ensure that support gets to those who need it as quickly as possible.